Sailor Moon Aeons, Book 3: Crystal City
by Razor Knight
Summary: With Crystal Tokyo already a reality, the Senshi can finally take a break. Or can they? What challenges will the Senshi have to face in their new home? How many alien invasions will happen in the next five hundred years? Those are things even the Senshi are wondering...
1. Peaceful life

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 1: Peaceful life.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: February 19, 2019_

* * *

"... And the young nation has yet to be recognized by several other countries-"

Yukiko turned the screen off. "I suppose a new country appearing out of the blue is not something the world will just accept overnight."

Aiko was cutting some meat, getting dinner ready. She didn't need to eat, but she still enjoyed food. And she had been sharing meals with her girlfriend for a decade, which was why she enjoyed preparing them. That, and Yuki's cooking was as deadly as her magic blasts.

"You think they'll try something?"

Aiko sighed. "Not sure. Japan itself has divided opinions about us. The better question is, do we really care? Other than the government of Japan, nobody had claims on the land our city is on. And after our generous 'donations' even Japan has to smile and nod."

"I guess... I had never seen that many zeros in a paper before."

Aiko closed the oven and smiled. "Dinner will be ready in about one hour."

"You should just cook it with magic."

"I tried. It doesn't taste the same."

Yukiko walked to the door. "Okay, then I'll go for a walk."

"I'll tag along," Aiko said as a second Aiko appeared, replacing the original in the kitchen, "I may be the only person who can literally be in two places at a time."

As they walked out, Yukiko looked around. "It's been one year, but I'm still getting used to the crystal buildings."

"Everything is so damn peaceful, too."

Yukiko smiled at that. Warwitch and Phase had only 'appeared' a few times since the city was rebuilt. Having both Rei and Kim as the ones in charge of cleaning the city had been more effective than they had thought. Crime rates had dropped to the point where Crystal Tokyo's internal security forces were nowadays barely needed for crimes. And, of course, the Guardians were no longer needed.

And speaking of Rei, as they walked near the palace, they could see one of the two persons who was apparently eager to keep her on edge. "Serenity?"

It wasn't the first time the Queen had decided to spend the day outside the palace. It's not like she was taking a risk, either. But as she heard that name, she looked at the two girls and sighed. "Aiko, you don't need to be so formal with me."

"Sorry, Usagi."

"Haven't seen you in normal clothes for weeks."

Usagi looked at Yukiko. "You two rarely come visit me. Are your jobs keeping you that busy?"

Yukiko smiled. "Not really." Aiko had, after a long time, convinced Yukiko to join the company. Zephyr-Mizuno Robotics - or ZM as it was usually shortened - had grown exponentially in the last year. Ami had really sped up research in several fields, and Aiko was also quite god at that. Yukiko was less interested in theories than testing, and she was quite good at not making things explode - unless that was the goal of the experiment.

Usagi smiled. "I can't really stay and chat, I have something I need to do."

"Something we can help with?"

"Gin's going to help me fix something."

"Now I'm curious."

Usagi started walking away. "Think about the date, and you may figure it out."

Yukiko looked at Aiko as Usagi left. "Have any idea?"

"I'm trying to remember... Wait, today is- Wow, can she really do that?"

"Aiko?"

"Let's go back home, I'll tell you on the way there."

* * *

'Are you sure about this?'

Usagi was looking at her friend, and the young girl besides her. She was using a skill she had as Serenity, to make others not notice her unless she wanted them to. It was something quite close to true invisibility. 'I want her to be happy. Setsuna says there are always risks, but that she'll look the other way this time.'

'You would still do it even if she was against it.'

'Yeah. Okay Gin, let's do it.'

* * *

Rei sat on a bench and let out a long sigh. How many years was now? She looked at Hisako, sitting next to her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Hisako looked around. "This park is nice."

Rei smiled at that. The small park had been built along with the rest of the city, and Rei knew why she had chosen that exact place for it. This was the place where the temple once was. The place she destroyed in her rage, the day he...

Hisako noticed her mother's mood. "Sorry."

Rei grimaced at that. "Hisa, I've told you before, what happened wasn't your fault."

Her daughter looked around. "I..." She stopped as she saw someone walking to them. "Dad?"

Rei looked up as she heard that, then stood up and started walking to him. "Yuu?"

"Yes."

"But how... Serenity."

"Dad!"

Yuichiro smiled as both Rei and Hisako hugged him. "Usagi already told me I've been gone for a while."

"Damn that woman, she chose this of all days to..."

Yuu embraced Rei as she started sobbing. Serenity had also told him that, she was bringing him back in the anniversary of his death, because she hated seeing Rei sad. "She's always been wiser than she looks."

Rei chuckled between sobs. "I missed you... We missed you. Let's go back home."

"Home," Yuu said, and looked around. "It will take me a while to get used to how things look."

"I'm still getting used to it," Rei admitted.

* * *

Usagi watched the three walk away, smiling. It had been too long since she had seen Rei that happy. That was all the reward she needed for her deed, but she could bet Rei was still going to call her soon. "It was more than worth the risk."

'If I could, I would be crying right now.'

"Sometimes I wish you had an 'off' button."

'Sorry. You try being alone and unable to communicate with anyone for billions of years and then let's see you stay silent.'

"Billions?"

'Maybe longer than that. Memory's a bit fuzzy beyond dozen billion years ago.'

"Wow, you make even Galaxia sound like a toddler."

'... Uh, she was one for quite a long time.'

"I know, that was the joke. Anyhow, time to go check how many wars Mamoru avoided today."

'I think I'll tag along,' Gin joked.

* * *

A few days later, Hisako entered her house - which was, like other Senshi houses, not as big as one could expect from the rulers of a country - and sighed. "Mom, are you home?"

Rei walked out of the kitchen. "Hi Hisa. How was school?"

"Kind of boring, except that I realized I can do this now."

Rei saw Hisako's clothes morph into a familiar suit. She wasn't surprised her daughter had done it without words, as both she and Hikaru had trained long enough to be able to use magic just with thought. "Oh, you're Sailor Mars now."

"But the suit looks all wrong."

Rei chuckled. "No, that's a Planet Senshi suit, the most basic form. You'll have to train to grow stronger if you want to use more powerful forms."

"Oh."

Rei turned serious. "Now, I know we spoke about this, but I'll say it again. You're much stronger in that form than you are normally. Be careful not to hurt anyone, okay?"

"I know, I won't treat this as a game. But I wish there was some evil monster army out there."

"Peace isn't a bad thing."

"Guess not."

"Besides, you're not even ten."

"Aunt Usagi told me I am already stronger than you were when you were fourteen."

"I'm going to have to talk to her about saying too much."

* * *

Queen Serenity of Crystal Tokyo was not someone who would get scolded often, but in this case, she had to admit her friend was right. "I only told her because she was curious, but you're right, Rei. We can't just let untrained Senshi fight evil. It barely worked for us."

"But now she'll keep nagging me about-"

"Then let me help her train."

Rei looked at the woman who had just walked in. "Eavesdropping isn't nice, Princess."

Chibiusa shrugged. "Rei, I'm bored too. I was going to leave the city as soon as things settled, look for something evil - and maybe even not human - to shoot at. But being the mentor of a new generation of Senshi sounds like a challenge."

Rei smiled at that. "You are a Younger Senshi, just like them, even if you're a bit older than them."

"Yeah. We can figure out a schedule later on."

"I'll go give this some thought, but I think I like your idea." Rei started walking out of the room, but turned back to her. "Tell Hotaru I said hi."

Serenity looked at her daughter as Rei left, and once again cursed her one natural skill. "I can see there's something bothering you."

"I knew you would know."

"So, what is it?"

"Lately, Hotaru's been a bit distant. I asked her about it, and..."

* * *

_Hotaru sat on the bed besides Chibiusa. "I don't want you to think I don't love you, but I... Want something we can't get."_

_Chibiusa smiled. "Tell me, I promise... Heck, you know I'm not going to hate you, no matter what it is." She had a pretty good guess, too._

_"I mean... Rei has a kid. Minako has a kid. Ami and Naru, too. Not sure how Hana and Mako don't have kids too."_

_"I see..."_

_"I see them being all 'mom' and I feel envy. And then I feel like a monster for that. I just... My mom died when I was too young to remember her, so I don't really know how having one feels, and yet... I don't regret falling in love with you, but I can't stop feeling the way I do about this."_

_"You want to be a mom too, but being with me makes it impossible. I... I would be lying if I said the thought never crossed my mind. I thought about adoption but for some reason I discarded that."_

_Hotaru sighed. "At risk of sounding weird, or creepy, I never saw that as an option. I... Damn, this will sound crazy, but I don't just want to have a child, I want it to be yours."_

_Chibiusa smiled awkwardly. "That makes me feel weird and happy at the same time."_

* * *

Serenity had listened to the story, and as Chibiusa fell silent, she smiled. "I can see the problem."

"Yeah, but it's not like we can do a thing about it."

'Maybe they can.'

'What?'

'Thanks to your "gift" to her.' Wait, I'll just tell her myself.'

Chibiusa saw Gin appear and frowned. "What are you up to?"

"Nice to see you too," Gin said. "I was telling your mother that there may be a way for your wish to happen."

"Huh?"

"Remember, there's two of 'me' with you now."

Chibiusa nodded at that. True, her mother had given her the Ginzuishou Black Lady was using, and it had fused with her own. But what did it have to do with... "Wait. No. No damn way."

Gin grinned. "Haven't you heard? There is nothing impossible for us."

"Wow, that's..." Chibiusa blushed a deep red. "I'll go give Hotaru the good news."

"Have fun," Serenity said.

Gin looked at her as Chibiusa teleported out of the room. "You know, they could be the first, but not the last."

Serenity nodded. "I figured as much. Would you mind letting the others have that bit of happiness?"

"No." Gin looked at Serenity and frowned. "What's wrong?"

"I'll have to wait a thousand years for that."

"You already have Chibiusa around."

"I know. Guess I'm just being weird."

Gin vanished from the room. 'I'll go watch them now.'

"Gin..."

'What? I sort of have to be there to make sure things work as intended.'

Serenity nodded. "I know. You just made it sound weird."

'Oops?'

* * *

Hisako was a bit upset. These kids were really dumb, bullying her. She didn't mind their glares, or that there were at least twenty of them. "Go away."

The 'leader' of the crowd, a kid who was a head taller than her, looked at her and sneered. "Why? What will you do, ya freak?"

"Yeah! You only have good grades because your mom's a Senshi"

"No, I study and work hard. You should try that, too."

The kid glared at her before punching her. He then flinched as his hand felt like it had hit a wall. "What are you?"

"A Senshi, since yesterday. Now, can I leave? I need to go train, I don't want to be late."

"Shut up, freak!"

"Oh, how brave, two dozen guys taking on a single girl."

The kids all turned to see someone standing near them. The pink hair and her hairdo were all too familiar to anyone who had lived in Crystal Tokyo this past year. "Oh shit, it's Chibimoon."

"Name's Usagi, brats," Chibiusa said. "Now scram or I'll tell your parents and your teachers that you think bullying is okay."

"Oh look, little Hisako needed a grown-up to look after her. So lame."

Chibiusa smiled in a creepy way. "Oh, you're wrong. I'm protecting you from her. She's a Senshi, even without training, she could knock you all out easily. And I plan to train her until she's able to keep up with me."

Hisako walked past the would-be-bullies, who didn't try to stop her. "I get it, boys, you don't like me. Honestly, after this I don't like you either. You hate me because my mom's the Senshi of Fire? Because I also have those powers? That's stupid."

Chibiusa saw Hisako walk away and looked at the crowd. "I won't come save you again. In fact, if you gang up on her again, I won't tell her a thing if she decides to fight back. So please, for your own safety, don't do something this silly again."

She walked away, quite aware the crowd was shouting at her, and some of the things they shouted were not meant to be said by kids their age. Maybe she would have to tell the teachers, at least, about this.

* * *

She found Hisako waiting a block away. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I... Was almost ready to start punching back."

"There's always going to be someone who doesn't agree with you. Thirty percent of the population of Tokyo moved out of the city after we explained them abour our plans, and manu countries are looking at us like we're some sort of terrorist overlords. Anyhow, I'm not going to tell you to let them hit you if they come back, but if you do fight back, don't regret it."

Hisako was silent for a few blocks, but then looked at her. "Can you teach me to dodge?"

Chibiusa chuckled. "Yeah, that's also an option. Let them tire themselves out."

"So, where will we train?"

"Ever been out of the city?"

"Nope."

"Well, today is your lucky day then."

"Can't we just use a gym or-"

"Even a first level Senshi can cause a lot of property damage."

"Are we going to walk all the way there?"

"No, just waiting for someone."

Saturn appeared near them. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Aunt Hotaru too? Cool."

Saturn smiled. "Let's go."

* * *

Rei saw Hisako appear near her and blinked. "Hisa, since when-"

"I asked them, they taught me how to teleport."

"So, had fun?"

Hisako winced. "Those two... I didn't know how scary they could be when training."

"We can all be like that, I guess."

"My everything hurts."

Rei chuckled. "That sounds like the first serious training we had with Hakko."

"It was fun, though. I want to keep training."

"Good. Maybe one day you'll be out there fighting evil, instead of me."

"No, I want to fight evil with you and dad."

Rei smiled. "Yeah, that would be fun."

* * *

**A/N:** Too much slice-of-life stuff going on. Need to find an invasion fleet or three, before this turns into Friends. Nothing wrong with Friends, but it had too few explosions for me.

For those who read the old version: Yes, a certain character will be showing up a lot earlier in this version.


	2. Strange is normal

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 2: Strange is normal.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: February 20, 2019_

* * *

Ami typed a few commands into her glove and looked up. "It's ready to go."

Aiko nodded. "Shield deploying."

Yukiko saw the barrier appear in front of them. A translucent dome, surrounding the whole city. It was nearly invisible, making it look way weaker than it really was."It seems to be working."

Ami looked at her. "Care testing it?"

Yukiko nodded and shot a small energy blast, which was absorbed by the barrier. She tried a larger one, but that one was also absorbed. "Okay, how about this?" She said as she shot a third one.

Aiko saw the blast vanish and nodded. "Yeah, even something as strong as an Eternal Senshi attack can't get through."

"Okay, one last try!" The blast this time was smaller, but both Ami and Aiko had ways to 'see' how much power it had. "Eat this!"

The barrier did exactly that, but her two friends were impressed. "Yuki, that blast was close to a Holy Senshi attack."

She looked at Aiko. "Only 'close'? Damn, I still need to train."

"I can help with that," Aiko said.

Ami smiled. The barrier was finally working. It made it impossible to enter the city - or leave - without them knowing, both by physically moving through, or teleporting. It also stopped anything it deemed dangerous for its inhabitants, be it energy blasts, tank shells, or even nuclear warheads.

She looked to the side and shook her head. Aiko had also decided to test the wall, by punching and kicking it. "That won't work."

"Maybe we should call Mako," Yukiko said, "she's so freaking strong I'm scared she'll split the planet in half if she stomps too hard."

Ami chuckled. "She's not _that_ strong."

* * *

Hours later, Ami was in Hotaru's house, and she was not sure she believed her scanner's data. "You're pregnant."

Hotaru smiled. "It finally worked."

"Finally?" Ami asked.

"Oh, Usagi didn't tell you about it?"

Ami looked at Chibiusa, who was unnervingly calm. "No."

"The Ginzuishou can do a lot of impossibles, this is just another one of them."

Chibiusa smiled at Hotaru. "I didn't plan it for you to be the one, but..."

"I guess my wish was granted."

Ami nodded. "Well, I see nothing wrong with the baby or you both, so I guess you'll just have to wait."

"So in a decade there will be a Younger Sailor Saturn around," Hotaru said.

"Or maybe Younger Younger Sailor Moon? Or both at the same time?"

Ami frowned. "I hate this part of my job." She looked at her two friends. "Even with two Senshi of the same planet, there is a chance that the offspring may have just the ability to use magic, but no Senshi powers. Or they could be normal humans."

Chibiusa gasped. "I never heard about that before."

Hotaru shrugged. "Even if our daughter ends up being normal, she will still be-"

"Why are you sure it's a girl?" Ami asked.

Chibiusa looked at her. "Well, two females, no Y chromosome around..."

Ami nodded at that. "But magic is involved. For all you know, the Ginzuishou could make the baby male at random, mimicking nature."

Hotaru decided to tell both her friends about a part of her powers they didn't know about. "Even though it's a skill I usually turn off, I can see souls, you already know that. But what you don't know is that, from looking at someone's soul, I can tell their gender. At least in a biological sense."

"Oh. Wow, that's..."

The pale woman looked at her lover. "I'm sorry for spoiling the surprise."

"I don't mind. It will make it easier to pick a name."

* * *

Hisako blinked at what she had just heard. She had just asked why Hotaru wasn't helping her train, but she got a lot more than she expected on return. "Wait, you... Hotaru is gonna have a baby?"

"Yeah."

"So you're going to be a dad?"

The woman shook her head at that. "Not the first one to tell me that."

"Well, it's true, isn't it?"

"Sure. Anyhow, I'm here to train you, not chat, so get ready."

Hisako nodded and transformed. She was used to it after one week, but at first it had been annoying, and a real show of their difference in power, that Chibiusa had never needed to transform to train her. "Here goes! Fire Rain!"

Chibiusa blocked the barrage of flame bolts. "You don't need to call your attacks."

"But isn't it fun to come up with names for them?"

"I guess." And the young girl had already shown she could attack without motion or words. As a result of their training to use magic, this new generation had an easier time using their Senshi powers. She knew Minako's daughter was almost ready, too, and the youngest members of this 'new generation' would be joining in soon enough. Even her own daughter...

Hisako saw ChibiUsa take a hit, but she didn't even flinch. "Hey, you okay?"

The older woman smiled apologetically. "Sorry, I... Guess my mind is elsewhere today."

Hisako stood there, unsure if she could say what she thought.

Chibiusa saw the girl wasn't moving to attack again "What is it?"

"Mom told me training when you're in a bad mood, or distracted, could be bad. Wanna stop for today?"

"You know, you're smart for your age. And kind. I bet your mom was like you at your age."

"You're smart and kind too. You'll be a good mom."

* * *

Hotaru saw her friend appear near her, and frowned. "Are you crying?"

Chibiusa sighed, rubbing the tears off her cheek. "Don't worry, they're happy tears."

Hotaru smiled. "So, training didn't go well?"

"Hisako noticed I was distracted, and told me she thought I would be a good mom."

"She's not wrong."

"Our girl will have two awesome moms, huh?"

"Yeah... Say, what do you think of the name 'Kyouko?'"

"I like it. Let's go with that."

"That was fast."

Chibiusa shrugged. "I was never good at coming up with names. You know, 'Pink Sugar Heart'?"

"Fair enough."

"I thought you would go for Keiko, though."

Hotaru looked at her. "That was mom's name... But I never told you-"

"I asked your dad one time I visited your old house."

"Oh. Anyhow, I like Kyouko better."

"Okay, I can't wait to have little Kyouko driving us mad."

"What if she's a well-behaved girl?"

"With a name like that?"

"Guess she'll have an awesome mom, and a silly one."

"Ouch."

* * *

"Taka is really smart for his age."

Terry looked at Aiko. "Technically, you were smart since the moment we created you."

"... Point taken."

Takamaru Mizuno was not paying attention to his parents and sister. Adults were boring, too boring.

"So, the younger Usagi is going to have a daughter?"

"Yeah." Terry smiled at her. "She told us their 'method' could be used by anyone."

"Even someone whose body is technically a machine?"

Ami smiled. "I asked her that, she said Gin can do it."

"Wow... You know, in this city, strange is sort of normal."

Terry was surprised to not see the expected reaction from Aiko. "Yeah. So, you're not interested in-"

"I'll tell Yuki about it, but I think I lived with her long enough now. She doesn't really like kids."

"And you?"

"I never knew it was an option, but I'll let her decide."

"Nice way to dodge the real question."

Aiko looked at her mother. "Okay, yes, I would love to- You two know I've wanted to be 'human' since the day I became sentient. And having children of my own is one thing I thought was impossible for me."

"You should tell Yuki that."

"I don't want to force-"

"It's your choice, but you may end up hurting her if you hide your feelings like that."

"I'll have to think this through. Thanks for telling me."

* * *

Rei wasn't angry, but she could still play the part well. "Hisa, did you get into a fight today?"

"That wasn't a fight, it was a joke."

"Hisako Hino, don't try to _sarcasm_ your way out of-"

"Mom, I didn't hurt any of them. I didn't need to fight back. I just dodged until they ran out of stamina."

Rei blinked at that. "Oh. Still, you could have teleported away."

"They would try again if I did that. But now... After they were done trying to hit me, some of them looked at me with awe, and others seemed scared."

Rei frowned. "I'm going to have a talk with the principal and the teachers. I want you to enjoy school, and... Those boys may try to target Hikaru next."

"Can I punch them if they try?"

Rei let out a long sigh. "Hisa..."

Hisako tried her best to stand her ground, but her mother's stare could be really frightening. "I promise I won't fight those bullies."

"Good. Now go, Chibi must already be waiting."

* * *

Next morning, after school, Hisako was not surprised to see one of the 'bullies' walking to her as she headed home. It was, however, surprising to see him without his sidekicks. "What do you want?"

The boy met her glare with a serious face. "I- We're sorry for bothering you before, Hino. It won't happen again."

"... l expected you to keep trying."

He looked at her and shook his head. "After the way you dodged us all yesterday? That made us realize something. You don't need an adult to protect you, you don't even need to fight to beat us. You're no freak, you're awesome."

"Uh, thanks. Mom was going to come to school today, but... I'll give your gang a chance."

"Thanks, Hino." The boy looked at her for a second and sighed.

"Anything else you needed?"

"You're already a Senshi, right?"

"Yeah."

"Can I see your suit?"

Hisako blinked at that. "A strange request from someone who hates the Senshi."

"Uh, that was just... We said dumb things, I know, sorry. But I never saw a Senshi before, not in person. If you don't want to, that's fine."

Hisako closed her eyes and her uniform changed into her Senshi outfit. "There."

"You look cool, Hino. Sailor Mars, right?"

"Yeah. Younger Mars."

"Well, see you."

As the boy walked away, Hisako turned back to normal. Hopefully, that meant she would have a peaceful, boring life at school.

"Nice, you got your first fan."

She saw her mother there and smiled. "Fan?"

"I heard most of that," Rei said, answering the question her daughter was likely to ask. "He seems sincere, so I won't talk to anyone yet."

"So, why did you come here?"

"Can't your mom worry about you, Hisa?"

"... Yeah."

"Also, Chibi is busy today so I'm going to be your training partner this time."

"Oh. Cool, I'll get to fight the real Sailor Mars."

"Don't say that, you make it sound like you're fake. You already have more power than I did when I firsr got my powers. You would have toasted the evil youma from back then easily."

"I still can't believe youma were evil before. Mister Sayel doesn't look evil."

Rei smiled at that. Sayel was a math teacher in the school Hisako went to, and one of many youma that had decided to live amongst humans. Some hid their identities, so only the Senshi knew they were youma, but in rare cases, the youma weren't afraid to let others know. "Did he ever show your class his real face?"

"Yeah, he said he wanted us to know. He looks like a werewolf, but he's a nice person."

* * *

A few days later, a few Senshi were meeting in one of the palace's rooms. Aiko had called them in, but hadn't given them any other details. "I'll jump straight to the reason I called you all here for. Last night, a telescope in Europe was scanning a region of our galaxy, and this is one of the images it took."

Terry looked at the image. An orange 'cloud' of gas surrounding a planet. "So what is that exactly?"

Ami was staring at the image. "I remember reading about that. Well, my past self did. A World Eater."

"Yes, and after checking archived from many other sources, I calculated its trajectory. It's heading this way, right now."

Serenity looked at the screen. "World Eater... I remember hearing about them, in my past life. Everyone thought they were just legends."

Gin appeared and looked at the few people in the room. "Sorry, I need to correct an error about those things. The Senshi of the past fought a creature like this one, a "World Eater," and another one that they called Star Eater. I don't think I need to explain what it does. But they're not different species. A World Eater is the "baby" form, when it grows large enough it also starts eating stars."

Aiko looked at the image. "So this one..."

"From the size of that planet, the creature is large enough to be a Star Eater."

"How long until it gets here?"

"At its current speed, ten years."

"Ten years?" Yukiko had remained silent, but she couldn't stay quiet. "You said this was an emergency."

Gin laughed at that. "A being like that one? Be glad you have ten years to get ready. Despite not being a sentient creature, it could take all of you to defeat it."

"All the Senshi, you mean?"

Gin looked at Serenity. "She's still underestimating herself, huh?"

Serenity looked at the others. "Aiko, tell the rest of the team about this. We'll need to train, just like the Younger Senshi."

* * *

"A Star Eater, huh?" ChibiMoon said, looking up to the sky. "Our planet is an evil magnet."

"Thanks to Serenity, it should be in theory worse than before."

Hotaru was right, as Serenity had removed the spell blocking the mana wells. Before, the Earth had been a mana desert, with only three areas (under Tokyo, New York and London,) where mana flowed, slowly, into the atmosphere. But nowadays, mana was flowing free, all around the world. It had some interesting side-effects, like enabling some of their non-Senshi allies to keep using spells almost as long as a Senshi could.

It also had some annoying side-effects. All over the world, for the past year, there had been hundreds of new mages. Some tried to do good, by emulating the Guardians and hunting down criminals, while others chose the side of evil. Haruka and Michiru had rarely been to the city, as they were taking care of the evil humans that gave mages a bad reputation.

It was an era, as Chie had once said, of Sailor Your-Name-Here, as many teenagers (and even adults) who could now use magic, had decided to use suits like those the strongest beings in the world used, coming up with silly names like Sailor Starshine of Dragon Power. It was both flattering and annoying.

"Is Hisako's training going well?"

"Yes. She should be close to being a Twilight Senshi now."

"Twilight at the age of ten..."

"I was a Star Senshi at that age."

"Well, you were a Senshi at the age of six. I think that gave you a head start."

"I think I'll have to get used to not hearing my nickname, though."

"For me, you'll always be Chibi."

"Thanks."

"Having two Usagi around can get confusing, but it could be worse, we could call our daughter Usagi too..."

"No thanks, I'll pass."

* * *

**A/N:** Continuing the tradition of punny names, Kyouko means "doom child." Well, that and a few dozen other things, depending on the kanji used.


	3. Nuclear threat

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 3: Nuclear threat.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: February 21, 2019_

* * *

Since his daughter had been a Senshi for a long time, he could say he had seen enough strange things in his life to make it hard for him to be surprised. And yet, his daughter had found, once again, a way to leave him speechless.

"Dad?"

"I'm not sure I heard you right, Hotaru. You're pregnant?"

"Yes."

"And the father is..."

Hotaru chuckled. "Chibi. Also, she hates being called that."

"I don't want to sound rude, but how?"

"The Ginzuishou."

The old scientist nodded. "Oh, that makes sense. Somehow."

"Thanks to my powers, I already know it's going to be a girl."

Tomoe looked at his daughter. "Well, congratulations. And I see your dear wife is still not fond of giving weird news."

"She's training Rei's daughter right now. In a few years we'll have a few more Senshi around."

"Not many alien invasions these days."

"Yeah, but we know of a powerful creature that's heading our way. It's still ten years away."

"Ten years?"

"We got better at seeing them coming. It's several light years away, and it moves slower than light."

"How powerful is it?"

"It survives by eating planets and stars."

Tomoe smirked at that. "Does it have a silly helmet, and a silver man in a surf board?"

"... Fortunately, no."

* * *

Minako looked at the creature standing on the other side of the city's shield. "Oh, one of these."

The mantis-like monster glared at her. "Pitiful humans, fear the might of Mugale!"

The woman laughed. "Okay, bug brain, listen. You're not getting through that shield, and unless you want to be dead ten seconds after I'm done talking, you better go back to whichever bug world you live in, and tell your friends to stop trying."

"Such words won't scare me, human. I will destroy-"

"Aaaand ten. Time's up."

Minako started walking away a second before the mantis was vaporized by a light beam from above. "Even Hisako could have killed that one."

Serenity appeared near her. "Oh, you're already done."

Minako could understand why Serenity was upset. "Sorry, I'll tell the others to leave the next one to you. You could have probably killed it by staring at it, though."

"Having nothing to fight... I like peace, but the old days got me used to having a new thing to deal with every few months."

"Maybe you could try some training fights?"

"What if we start-" Serenity shook her head before finishing that thought. No, she knew her friends all too well. They weren't bloodthirsty, like the Senshi Rex had told them about. Even Haruka and Michiru, who had been away for a while, had yet to kill any human that took the path of evil. And it's not because they couldn't, as the strongest "Lesser Senshi" - a name she disliked, but was constantly used to refer to mages who emulated them - wasn't even comparable to a Star Senshi.

"I've been doing some training," Minako said as the two walked. "Brad's been helping me, and also Mako and Naru."

Serenity sighed. "I guess I should too. Not just because of that thing heading our way, but... There may be stronger foes out there."

* * *

Time flies, as they say. Minako looked at her daughter (who was already ten years old) and smiled. "Congratulations."

Hikaru was wearing a Senshi outfit, and her mother knew what Rei had said was right. If not for the slightly darker hair and green eyes, she would have thought she was looking at her past self.

The girl smiled. "Now I can finally start training with Hisa."

Minako nodded at that. "Sure, as long as you behave and follow Usagi's rules." It almost fell wrong calling the pink-haired woman 'Usagi,' but it had been her request a few months earlier. Perhaps having a daughter had made her feel "Chibiusa" did not fit her anymore.

"I can't wait to show Hisa this suit."

Minako smiled. "Just don't expect to be able to beat her. She's a Star Senshi now."

"That's not fair."

"You'll just have to catch up with her."

* * *

Usagi watched the small girl petting Diana. "Guess Hotaru was right. She's quite well-behaved despite our choice of name for her."

Serenity smiled. "I'll apologize in advance for all the spoiling I'll give Kyouko when she grows up."

"So, you can feel it, right?"

Serenity knew what she meant. "I can see... She's got Senshi magic in her, but she won't be a dual Senshi."

"So whose power-"

"She has powers from Saturn, the Moon, and Earth."

Diana gasped at that. "Wow, a triple Senshi?"

"Tri-ple." Kyouko repeated.

Serenity looked at her. Her hair was a darker shade of pink and her skin was pale, but one could still see this was her daughter's child. "Where is Hotaru?"

"We're taking turns training the Youngers."

Diana sighed. "I told you, you can leave Kyouko to me."

"When the two other Younger's powers awaken, we may have to do that. Even two can be a handful to train."

"Remember, they are still children. No need to go all Hakko on them yet."

"I know. We're always trying to find new ways to make training fun. You should show up and surprise them, if you want to check on them."

"I may do that, someday."

* * *

"Light Grenade."

Mars dodged the ball of light easily, but it exploded right behind her, knocking her down. Twilight level attacks did not hurt her much, but it still stunned her. "Damn, your win. That's a tricky move."

Venus smiled proudly. "I can make it explode on impact, or when I want it to."

Saturn was watching the two girls' mock battle. "It's almost embarrassing to see a ten years old Senshi already figured out how to modify attacks."

Mars nodded. "Mom once said you had been taught magic 'backwards.' I don't understand how that could happen."

"We didn't know we had magic. Back when I was a kid, magic was considered a fantasy, something that couldn't exist. We only learnt of our powers because we needed to fight an enemy."

"The old youma."

Saturn nodded. "Back then, only some of us had some training in combat, and for a while our group relied on luck to win. We learnt many things you girls already know about magic, years after we first became Senshi."

"Wow, I didn't know that. But how did you, uh, level up?"

"Hikaru, your mom became a Twilight Senshi fighting a very strong youma. It was a tough fight, and we were all out of energy, but such things can force Senshi to upgrade."

"So being in danger lets you level up?"

"Yes. The bad thing is, we usually could only use one attack before we ran out of magic, because it was an 'emergency' thing, our body wasn't ready to use that much power yet. But when we started training, soon we figured out training could let us get stronger and be ready to 'level up' when we needed to. One time, there was an enemy so strong, Moon had to level up twice, right then and there, to beat them."

"I think it's good we don't need to fight yet."

"I don't think your parents would want to see you risk your lives like we used to. At least not for a few years."

Aiko appeared near them. "I'm sorry, but you'll have to end your training session early."

Saturn looked at her. She looked quite worried. "What's wrong?"

Aiko looked at the two young girls and then back to Saturn. "A terrorist group known as 'Black Hand' has decided to launch a nuke at our city."

"Shit."

Saturn looked at the young Venus. "Language, Hikaru. Anyhow, go back to your homes, we'll deal with that."

Just as the two girls left, Serenity appeared, floating in mid-air. "There's no 'us' for this one. I'm not letting it hit."

"What are you planning, Usagi?"

"I'll use an old trick. If it worked back then, it'll work much better now."

Younger Moon appeared right next to her, just in time to hear her mother's plan. "Mom, last time you did that, it almost killed you."

"Last time I did that I wasn't at even one percent of my current power. Stay and watch if you want, but I have to do this. It will let them know even mankind's most destructive weapons are useless against us."

"Take a bully's power and they'll run home to their mommies," Saturn said.

Moon let out a frustrated growl. "Okay, fine, but if you get hurt doing this, I'll be saying 'I told you' until Kyouko graduates from college."

"Fair enough," Serenity said. "Aiko, please record everything, and send it to as many news agencies as you can."

Aiko smiled at that. The elder Usagi didn't usually show off, but when she did, she pulled no punches. "Will do."

Queen Serenity did understand her daughter's worry, but she knew she could do it, and she would show the world that she was far beyond human weaponry. She saw the large missile heading her way, and smiled. She grabbed it, and just like the time during the Kh'Sun invasion, she absorbed its power. However, two things were different. The first - something that made those near her understand she hadn't been overestimating her powers - was that she didn't even flinch as the energy flowed into her. And the second thing was, she absorbed that energy much faster than before. As she tossed the now empty shell aside, she looked at Aiko - who was in this case the 'camera' - and smiled. "Thanks for the meal, Black Hand."

She then looked to the south, in the direction of the ocean, and Aiko knew what she was looking at, the submarine which had launched the missile. "I know you are there," Serenity said as a white aura appeared around her, "and, if I was the monster many of you think I am, I would destroy that ship. But I am no monster, no murderer." She turned to Aiko again. "You just saw how useless your best weapons are, and it should not surprise you. I've fought creatures who could - and did - blow up the Earth, and won."

She sighed. "To the rest of the world: Hate us, respect us, fear us, I can take it. We can take it. And we'll help you even if you keep hating us, because we Senshi were born to protect mankind. Crystal Tokyo is here to stay. I hope if not this one, then future generations will learn to accept us."

As Serenity floated back down, Aiko mentally stopped recording, and summoned 'another' Aiko inside the city, who would take care of sending all that to the media. "Usagi, you can really look and sound... No, not scary, but- Would it be weird if I said I was a bit intimidated when you talked to 'me'?

Serenity smiled. "Well, I was trying to scare away any other potential attackers. Hard to play the part when the one I'm looking at is a friend."

Usagi frowned. "But wait, what will you do with the excess energy from that nuke?"

"Skip lunch, probably. I feel like I ate a ton of tasteless, stale food."

Aiko saw Serenity cringe in disgust and chuckled. "I sometimes forget, but Usagi will always be Usagi, huh?"

It was only a week later that the consequences of Serenity's display became obvious. While Serenity would not attack the Black Hand, she also hadn't ordered her friends to do the same. Uranus and Neptune had followed the trail of the Black Hand, and, in less than two hours, dismantled the organization.

The world as a whole was shocked. It wasn't just how quick they acted, but the fact there had been no casualties. Two women in their early thirties had, in a single night, made every anti-terrorist organization in the world look like rookies.

And Serenity had called them back, and was now staring at them both in turns, her face unreadable. "Haruka, Michiru, while I am a bit annoyed that you didn't even ask before you went to fight the Black Hand... I am also impressed you managed to still keep your promise."

Michiru nodded. "We didn't even fight. We let them shoot at us, Haruka tossed them around a bit with an air spell that would have tickled Jadeite, and they mostly surrendered on their own. When the leader surrendered, the few who were still willing to fight us dropped their weapons."

Haruka looked at Serenity. "We won't apologize, though."

"I would not accept an apology for doing what you thought was right."

"What we thought..." Michiru looked at Haruka. "We could fight every terrorist group out there, but it won't fix a thing. The 'Black Hand' started out as a bunch of farmers who, and I quote, 'were sick of working just to make the rich richer.' They found some 'sponsors' and their power grew enough through the decades to let them buy a submarine and a nuclear warhead."

Serenity thought about it for a minute. "I know what you mean. The 'sponsors' will just find the next group of unhappy civilians and arm them up." She shook her head. "I'll talk with Mamoru about this, he knows much more than me about diplomacy. But I think us going against the 'sponsors' could be bad."

Haruka sighed. "So, our hands are tied, huh?"

"I didn't say that. I understand your point. These 'sponsors' are likely the rich from some other country, using these civilians to get richer. If I could, I would gather all their money and throw it into the sun."

'You could probably do it.'

'Not now, Gin.'

"So what are you saying?"

"You two are not my 'soldiers' as the world often calls the Senshi, but my friends, so I won't force you to stay. I can't, as Queen Serenity of Crystal Tokyo, suggest that you try and make any of those 'sponsors' lives miserable by undermining their operations. I can't tell you that I want you to do that. And I certainly can't tell you I'll probably send help with the excuse of hunting you down."

Haruka shrugged. "Yeah, it's a pity you can't."

Serenity's clothes morphed into a simple dress, and she smiled. "Off the record, however, I can tell you I hope you kick those bastards around for me."

"Usagi..."

"Our mission is to protect mankind, even from itself."

Michiru looked at Usagi. "We'll be leaving the city this week. We already have a lead on who the ones backing the Black Hand was."

Usagi sighed as her clothes morphed back to what was, quite unfortunately, becoming her usual attire. "I can't wish you good luck on your, uh, rebellious rampage."

Michiru smiled at that. "Again, it's a pity you can't."

Luna had been mostly silent through all that, but as the two 'rogues' vanished, she sighed. "You say Mamoru is the one who is better at diplomacy, but from what I heard in the last few minutes, you're not bad at it."

"Diplomacy is all about who lies better. I hate it."

"... Sorry. Unfortunately, you can't get rid of diplomacy overnight."

"I know. I guess I'll have to figure something out."

"At least you're not starting wars to end wars. That's what mankind has been doing wrong for thousands of years."

* * *

"I've been thinking about what you told me before."

Aiko looked at her lover. "That's quite specific."

"You know, about us becoming... Parents."

"Oh," Aiko said, then her eyes widened. "So?"

Yukiko smiled. "I'm probably going to live for a long time because of magic, but... One day, maybe not this century, or the next, but one day I'll be gone. Leaving a kid or ten to look after you when that happens sounds like a good thing."

Aiko blushed. "Ten?"

"As long as it makes you happy, I don't care how many."

Aiko smiled. "Thank you."

"So, which Usagi should we ask-"

"I think the elder would be okay."

"Yeah, nothing awkward about asking my teenage crush to help me have a child with my gorgeous girlfriend."

Aiko rolled her eyes at that. "Hey... Think Usagi could make you immortal?"

"I never thought about asking her. You sure you won't get bored of me after the first five centuries?"

"Ask me again in a thousand years."

Yukiko smiled at that. "Sounds like a plan."

* * *

**A/N:** In the previous version of this story, I did a lot of "time skips" too often. When I went back to read it, it made the story feel rushed. So this time around I'm trying to take things a bit slower. There will be some skipping too, as writing about several centuries of near-absolute peace in detail is not something I see myself doing.

And yes, Serenity technically ate a nuke. Another normal Tuesday in Crystal Tokyo.


	4. Light and fire

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 4: Light and fire.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: February 23, 2019_

* * *

"How was school today?"

"Boring, as usual. Why do I need to go? I can learn all I need from books."

Terry shook his head. "Son, you'll never make any friends if you just stay home."

"Tsuki is smart like me. Why do I need any more friends? Kids at school are dumb."

Ami cringed at that. "Takamaru, don't say that."

"But mom..."

"No buts, you shouldn't call people 'dumb' just because they aren't as smart as you. My best friend was quite average at school, and yet she was the wisest at times."

"Your best friend? You mean aunt Usagi?"

Ami gave a small smile at that. Most of the Senshi kids had always thought of other adult Senshi as 'aunts' or 'uncles.' Proof that they were still as close as during their school years. "She is Sailor Moon. You know that, right? Would you say she's dumb?"

"No, she's cool." The boy looked at his father. "I know what you mean. Will making friends make school fun?"

"It did for me," Ami said, "Usagi was the first friend I had, I was always too focused in studying before I met her, but..." she smiled. "Books can teach you a lot of things, Taka, but they can't teach you how friendship feels. They can put it in words, but you would need to feel it yourself to really understand."

"Oh. Now I wonder if Tsuki is really my friend?"

"You get along," Terry said. "But you should figure it out yourself."

* * *

The younger Usagi was, once again, watching a mock fight between the two Youngers. Hisako was fourteen now, and at Guardian level. Hikaru was twelve, and a Cosmic Senshi. They had really gotten a head start. And the older they got, the easier it had been for her to see something about them. Something the two were unaware of, but unlike her mother, she wasn't going to help them. She hadn't even told Hotaru about it.

The other kids were not ready yet, unfortunately. Takamaru was eight, and Aiko had been helping him with magic for a while. Tsuki, Naru and Umino's daughter, was seven, and had yet to use magic. The potential was there, but she wasn't aware of it.

And Kyouko was four, and already using magic. Usagi wouldn't hide her pride at that fact.

"Light Explosion!"

"Flame Buckler!"

Younger Venus frowned as her light attack was blocked by a small fire shield. "Okay then, let's try.-"

"Flame Chains."

Flame tendrils shot out from the ground around Venus, wrapping around her before she could react. "Damn, this again? Light Explosion!"

Mars had been about to attack again, but gasped as her chains were blasted apart by Venus' attack. She saw Venus lying on the ground and rushed to her. "Hikaru!"

Venus opened one eye and looked at her. "That plan... Worked better in my head."

Moon walked to them. "Hikaru, that was reckless."

"But it got me out of the chains, so-"

"Really, and hurting yourself badly was worth it?" Moon frowned. "And think about how Hisako feels. Would you like seeing her hurt herself just to win a mock battle?"

Venus looked at Mars as Moon started healing her. "I... Sorry, I won't do that again."

Moon sighed. "Getting hurt during training is not impossible, but injuring yourself for no good reason? I taught you better than that."

"Usagi, it's okay."

Moon looked at Mars. "You girls, I've grown to think of you as family. You're like younger sisters to me."

Venus hugged her. "I'm sorry..."

Moon smiled and patted her head as she sobbed softly. "It's okay, don't cry." She then shook her head. "I guess that's going to be all for today. Go home, rest and calm down. Both of you."

Venus nodded at that, and teleported away. Mars looked at Moon. "I... I wish she would stop trying to show off."

Moon smiled. She didn't want to push them, but maybe dropping a hint would help them. "Try to figure out why she's doing it. Why she wants to impress you so badly. And if you can't do that, then maybe you should ask her."

"I... You know why she's doing it?"

"I have a guess, but I can't tell you. I could be wrong, and it could harm you."

Mars nodded. "I'll... See you tomorrow."

Moon closed her eyes as Mars left. "Mother, a Queen shouldn't eavesdrop."

Serenity 'appeared' a few meters from her. "I knew you knew I was there all along."

"So, is my guess right?"

"Yes, but it may be a one-sided deal."

"That could really mess things up."

"Not likely. I don't see Kage glaring at Hotaru, or at you. Things could be complicated for a while, but I think they're the kind of friends who can survive that."

"Hope you're right."

* * *

Ami smiled as her daughter 'appeared' in her house, along with a small boy. "Hi."

Aiko smiled back. "Hi mom. Yuki should be here in a minute." She looked at the boy. "Fubuki, manners."

"Hi grandma."

Ami's smile widened. "Hi Fubuki." She knew the boy wasn't very sociable, but it's not like Ami herself had been any better as a kid.

Yukiko appeared right then. "Sorry for being late. Had a couple Warwitch fans nagging me."

Ami nodded. "We all still get those once in a while."

Yukiko looked at her son. "I guess he proves your theory, right?"

"Yeah." Ami sighed. "A male born from two females. The Ginzuishou can be a surprising thing."

"What is really surprising is his power."

"Serenity told me. But it's not that surprising, you both are powerful mages, of course your child would also be a mage."

* * *

"Ky'ma, it's been a while."

"Sorry, Serenity. Helping Zephyr run a company that large keeps me too busy. Even if I don't need to sleep or eat, there are limits to how much I can look at numbers before I feel like screaming."

Serenity smiled. She could see Ky'ma was upset about something. "You don't need to be so formal."

"You may have forgotten I can sense magic, and it's not something I can turn off. Your power is- From this close, and even though I know you, I still feel like I'm about to get crushed."

Serenity nodded. "To be honest, I forgot you could... Here, is this better?"

Ky'ma blinked. Serenity's power had dropped to a level even a novice mage would shrug at. "How?"

"The power is still there, but I can make it 'vanish' almost completely."

"I can see it could be very useful in battle."

"Never had the chance to use it that way, but yeah."

The alien woman looked out the window. "The city has become blinding to me. So many magic auras around, even some of the youngsters..."

"I know." As Ky'ma stared at her, she decided to explain. "My special power is similar to you, but in a much larger scale. I can 'see' every magic-using being in the planet, and if I focus, I could tell you where any particular being is. Like how Terry and Ami are in Mako's restaurant."

"That's both awesome and frightening."

Serenity looked at her. "So, is this just a social visit?"

"Not really. Is Endymion around? I need to talk to him about a project that might help improve the city's popularity."

"He's in Europe right now. It's one reason I dislike diplomacy."

Ky'ma smiled at that. "Well, lit can wait."

"Can you tell me about it? I'll pass the message along."

"Using a Queen as a messenger, I don't-"

"Do you really see me as someone who would care for protocol? Also, I'm curious to hear about that plan."

"Well, Ami and Terry could explain the details better, but our company is building a satellite that could cleanse the planet of pollution."

"That sounds good. I don't think he'll be against that idea."

* * *

Several days passed without another training incident, but Hisako had started to see what Usagi meant. Something was different with Hikaru. She seemed distant, like she was mad at her. She couldn't tell what it really was, but she hesitated to ask her. Her friend would not keep a secret from her, would she?

Hikaru let out a long sigh. Training had been tough today, but she was still enjoying it. She had only realized it a few weeks ago, but she knew what she felt for Hisako. She had always looked up to her like an older sister, but now... She was seeing her as something else.

"There you go again."

Hikaru looked at her friend. "Hisa?"

"Lately you don't talk to me much outside training. And I've noticed you aren't looking at me in the eyes. Did I do something to make you hate me?"

The blond girl flinched. Could she tell her? What if her friend didn't feel the same? What if saying those words- No, she was done hiding it. "Hisa, I-"

Hisako froze. The way her friend was looking at her... She had seen it before. It was the way Usagi and Hotaru looked at each other. "Hikaru, are you..."

Hikaru looked down. Hisako was about to guess it by herself, so what was the point in hiding it? She looked up and smiled. "Hisako, I like you. But not just as a friend. I-"

"I..." Hisako looked at her friend. So this was what Usagi meant. But Hikaru was her best friend, she didn't want to hurt her. But she couldn't lie to her, either. "Hikaru, I'm sorry, but-"

"No. Don't say it. I know. I was just being stupid, hoping you would-"

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your... Fault."

As Hikaru vanished, her friend felt a shiver run down her spine. The way she had looked at her before leaving, was that anger? Frustration? Pain? Perhaps all three. "Hikaru..."

* * *

Minako looked up from the computer and gasped. She could see the dome of light outside the city, but she could also sense its source. "Hikaru!"

* * *

Rei had been the first to arrive, followed by Minako. They could both see Younger Venus standing in the center of a light bubble, her face wet with tears. To Rei, this scene was painfully familiar. "What the hell happened..." "Hikaru, calm down!"

Younger Venus looked at her mother. "Go away!"

The two knew it was dangerous to get close. That bubble was no normal spell, it was similar to the one Rei had used the day Yuu died. Even Holy Senshi could get hurt badly by it. But no, they had to take the risk, Hikaru's body was too young to take all that power for much longer.

But before either adult could act, Younger Mars appeared near them. "Hikaru, please don't do it!"

Minako was shocked. The way Hikaru was glaring at her friend was just wrong. Just what had happened between them?

"Please, Hikaru, I'm sorry I hurt you, but I-"

"Shut up!" Younger Venus sent a ring of light out, and the two Elders leapt up to avoid it. Younger Mars, however, didn't move. It wasn't that she was scared, and her training would have let her react, but- Hisako had smiled at her, just before the blast hit. "I- What did I... Hisako!"

Moon appeared near them. "Shit, I feared this could happen."

Mars saw Younger Venus had knelt on the ground, her power was back to normal, and she was just looking at Younger Mars' form. "Okay, what the hell was that for?"

"Rei..."

Venus looked at Moon, who was healing Hisako. "Usagi, you know what this is about?"

Younger Venus staggered up. "Hisa... Is she alive?"

"Barely," Moon said. "If you really had meant to kill her, she would be dead."

Venus walked to her daughter. "Hisako, what were you thinking?"

The young girl looked down. "For a minute there, I wasn't thinking at all. And I hurt Hisa. I'm such a dumbass."

Rei sighed. "Listen, both your mom and I want to know what happened. Can you tell us?"

Younger Venus smiled as she looked at Hisako, who was now sleeping. "I... I had been keeping something a secret from Hisa, but today she nagged me enough to make me say it."

Rei looked at Minako, whose eyes had widened enough to look painful. "I think we can guess, but what was it you told her?"

"Aunt Rei, would you hate me if I said I... I love Hisako? But the problem is, she doesn't. I could feel something 'snap' in my mind when she told me that, and felt the power rising, so I came here, outside the city. Away from her..."

Minako let out a long sigh. "I didn't think that could trigger such a reaction, but... You hurt Hisako. I know she'll forgive you for it, but it doesn't change-"

"Mina, stop it."

"Rei?"

"I know just how hard it is to think straight during that... If not for Usagi back then, I could have burnt the Earth to ashes. I won't say I'm not upset, but I can forgive Hikaru. And I'm sure Hisako will also understand."

Moon nodded. "You'll just have to talk to her about it."

Hikaru's suit was replaced by her civilian clothes. "What's there to talk about? I love her, she doesn't. I even attacked her for something that selfish... If she hates me for it, I deserve it."

Minako looked at her daughter. "You're just going to quit after one try? That's quite disappointing."

"Mom?"

"You didn't fall in love with her in a second. I don't even need to ask, you've been acting silly for weeks."

"That... Yeah, you're right."

Rei smiled. "Hisako has always seen you as a younger sister, and even as a rival when it comes to training. But that doesn't mean she will always be that way. I didn't really care for Yuu at first, but he slowly made me fall for him."

Hikaru looked at Hisako. "So you won't mind if I try to change that no into a yes?"

"As long as Hisa doesn't mind, then I can see no reason to get in your way."

The young girl turned to Minako. "Mom, let's go home, I'm kind of-"

Minako caught her daughter as she fell forwards. "It's amazing she could keep talking for that long after doing something like that."

Rei smiled. "Guess I need to take Hisa home too."

Moon nodded. "I'll tell Hotaru what happened. Just in case... I don't think it will be needed, but we may have to train them individually."

Rei noticed Minako had left. "No, that won't be needed."

"Okay, I trust your judgment."

* * *

Minutes later, Usagi was talking to her mother about what had happened. "... And I trust Rei so I will keep training them together."

Serenity frowned. "Perhaps you should have, as you so nicely say it at times, 'butted in.' It could have made it easier for both of them."

"I'm not you, I don't have fun playing matchmaker. I will admit that it could have gone better, but... Those two are very good friends. They'll be fine, even if they don't become an item."

"Let me know if you need help."

* * *

The next morning, Hisako stood right outside the door. She had been to Hikaru's room plenty of times before, but this was the first time she felt scared of entering. "Hikaru, can I come in?"

"Yeah..."

Hisako walked in, and saw her friend sitting in her bed. It was clear she had been crying for a while. "Hikaru-"

"Sorry for what I did."

"Don't worry about that. Listen, I... I never thought about you as anything but a friend. My best friend. But mom said you had told her something different than what you told me."

"Different?"

"Can you tell me what you told them? If you can do that, and then listen to my reply without going on a rampage... It would help us both move on."

What she told them? But she had told them the same, hadn't- No, Hisako was right. Even as she blushed fiercely, Hikaru still managed to stand and look at her friend. "Hisako Hino, I love you. And even if you don't love me now-"

. "You are my best friend, and I never even thought about that kind of love before. So, I can't tell you yes or no right now. Will you still be my friend?"

"I'll be your friend until the day that 'maybe' becomes a 'yes.'"


	5. How to train your Senshi

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 5: How to train your Senshi.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: February 24, 2019_

* * *

"... So from now on, you'll have a new training partner."

Younger Mars looked at the boy. "You're finally a Senshi. Nice."

Takamaru smiled. "Thanks."

Moon saw him turn into his Dragon form and nodded. "Let me see what you can do, Younger Dragon Saturn."

"That's a mouthful," the boy said. "Bone cage."

Younger Venus realized the attack had been aimed at her as long bones appeared around her, encasing her. "Oh, nice."

"That cage will drain your mana if you try to break free," the Dragon warned.

"Thanks for the warning," Venus said, "but don't underestimate the difference between a Planet and a Guardian Senshi!"

Younger Mars saw the boy's face as Venus punched her way out of his cage. "Impressive, but it was rude of you to target her outside an official training battle."

The Dragon smirked. "I can't wait to see how strong a Guardian Senshi is."

Mars chuckled. "Then you may be in for a surprise. Mars Eternal Power."

Elder Saturn was also there as a mentor today, and was surprised to see that. "She's not even sixteen and already an Eternal Senshi."

"You guys slacked off too much," Moon teased. She wasn't worried about the power difference, Hisako had never let power go to her head while training.

The Dragon was about to say something, but noticed someone else was very impressed about Mars' new suit. "Uh, is she okay?"

Mars looked at Venus, whose face was red. "Hikaru, not now."

"Sorry," Venus said, looking away. "Too cute..."

"Oh, I get it," the boy said. "You two are like Aiko and Yuki."

Venus nodded. "Well, I am."

He looked at Mars. "And you don't mind?"

Mars sighed. "Not really. It was a bit annoying at first, but I'm used to it."

Moon walked to them. "Okay, enough chatting. Since today is Takamaru's first training, I'll leave him to the one who knows the most about his power."

Saturn smiled. "That's why I'm here."

Moon turned to Venus. "Since you probably won't stop staring if I make you fight her, and I want to see what she can do, gow about you both try fighting me?"

"I, uh... Okay."

Saturn looked at the Dragon as Moon went a bit further out of the city to train the others. "You know, your father's quite good as a Saturn Senshi too."

"He is?"

"But there are parts of these powers he never really used. He's more interested in the fighting side of them."

"Are Senshi powers used for something else?"

Saturn smiled. "Yeah. For example, I can see the soul of others, and in your I see you're hiding something."

"I'm-"

"Don't bother. Are you scared of it?"

"No, but mom told me it's dangerous to use them both a lot."

"I've lived with one like you for a long time. Don't worry, I know when to stop a fight."

The Dragon nodded. "Okay, then... Mercury Dragon Power!"

Meanwhile, Moon was looking at Mars and Venus, who were down on their knees. She didn't need to attack, as they always tired themselves down trying to hit her. "You two should know you can't win like that."

Venus growled. "But I don't get it. We're fighting as hard as we can, and yet we've never been able to hit you."

"I've already taught you there is more to battles than shooting at things or punching things. You need to have a plan, to cover each other's weaknesses, not just attack at the same time."

"But in a real fight, we won't have time to think up a plan."

"That's right, Hisa. So you need to learn to read each other's mind."

"Uh, that isn't-"

"I don't mean it literally. I think... Well, you two are close. You may or may not become something else, but your connection is there." She saw them staring blankly at her and sighed. "Guess I'll have to show, not tell. Mother, you can stop hiding now."

Serenity appeared near her. "What can I help you with?"

"Serenity..."

The Queen looked at the two young girls. "Girls, it's just me, aunt Usagi."

Hisako smiled. "Uh, yeah. Sorry."

Moon turned to the side. "Hey, Hotaru!"

Saturn was pretty much just dodging as the Dragon tried to hit her, but looked at her. "What?"

"Let's give the kids a show of how teamwork looks."

Saturn smiled as she noticed Serenity was there. "Sure." She then noticed the Dragon was staring at her. "What?"

"You just kept dodging my punches while talking to her."

"That's what happens when you train seriously for a long time."

Venus and Mars walked to the Dragon as Moon and Saturn talked to Serenity. "This should be fun to watch."

The boy frowned. "How is that training, though?"

Mars smiled. "Mom told me she had learnt many things from watching the others train."

Serenity walked away from the two mentors. "Are you sure that's how you want to do it?"

Moon nodded. "No weapons, no magic. It's been a while since either of us fought you, mom, and I hope we can surprise you."

"It's time to show her even her dodging isn't perfect."

Serenity smirked. "This sounds like fun."

The three Youngers gasped as Serenity made the first move, dashing forwards at a speed that was close to a short-range teleport. She nodded as Moon caught her fist, then kicked back to stop Saturn, who had predicted her first move.

The fight was amazing, and also intimidating, to watch, even for the two who had been training for longer. But both Hisako and Hikaru slowly understood what Moon meant. There were no wasted punches, no random kicks. It was almost like a dance, the two Senshi seemed to know exactly what the other would do next, and Serenity had slowly gone from just dodging, to trying to hit them as she realized how good a team they were.

Serenity suddenly leapt away from them, and laughed. "This is fun, but I won't lose."

Moon smirked. "You will."

Saturn rushed forwards, going for a punch to the stomach. Serenity blocked that, and knew Moon was probably going to try and... Wait, Moon was not moving? Saturn used the second of hesitation to kick her leg, causing her to stumble forwards. Moon rushed in as well, going for a kick, but Serenity grabbed her leg and knocked her down. She then sensed something and barely dodged aside as Saturn tried to punch her back. But that caused her to lose her grip on her other foe, who kicked her side, making her fall sideways.

Serenity staggered up. "Not done yet."

Moon once again rushed in, going for a jab, but Serenity grabbed her arm, knocking her down. But that's when she understood their plan, as Saturn had rushed in right behind Moon, virtually invisible until it was too late to dodge.

Serenity sat up, her head ringing from the kick she had taken for her error. "You two have really improved. I yield."

"That was awesome."

Moon smiled, seeing the three Youngers walk to them. "You get what I mean now, right?"

Venus nodded. "I think I get it. But you two weren't even looking at each other most of the time. Even in that last attack... How did you know you had to 'shadow' Usagi?"

"We've been together for a long time. We know what the other can and can't do, and we can guess each other's moves. It's gotten to a point where we could fight each other for two hours without getting hit once."

Moon smiled. "It's almost like we unconsciously read each other's minds. I didn't 'know' she would do that, but I still kept a straight line to help her stay behind me, without thinking. And somehow, she 'knew' I would do that."

Serenity looked at them. "I'm a bit envious of you. Mamoru and I haven't reached that level of instinctive fighting yet."

"Well, compared to us, you train way too little with him. But you both are busy running the city nowadays, so... Leave the front line fighting to us, unless we really need your-"

Saturn frowned. "Stop. You should know your mother can't agree to that."

"That's true. I'm not just Queen Serenity. I'm Sailor Moon. I can't just turn my warrior side off."

"Sorry. I gotta admit that it's hard to remember that at times. I didn't think this city would be dull and boring from day one."

"You look like you're having fun while training them," Saturn noted.

"Yeah, I... That's one reason I wanted to do it."

Dragon Saturn sighed. He was bored, but they wouldn't stop talking. 'Bone Cage.'

Moon looked at the Dragon as bones surrounded her. "... Really? You love surprise attacks, don't you?"

"Taka, that's rude," Venus said, "and you know she's a Holy Senshi, and dual just like you? You can't win."

Moon looked at him. "It's not bad, Terry is the same. That desire to challenge any foe no matter how strong... I can respect it."

"Uh, thanks."

"But your 'cage' has a major flaw. Want me to show you?"

"A flaw? What is it?"

"This cage absorbs mana, and I'm sure it sends it to you. Against enemies around your level, it could be useful, as you can recharge while leaving them weakened. But if the difference in power is higher, it could be bad for you."

"Why? Mana is mana, I would still get the same results."

Moon grabbed one of the bones forming the 'cage' and smiled. "No Senshi can hold an unlimited quantity of mana, we all have limits to how much we can gather before it's dangerous. Here, let me show you."

Mars saw the cage lit up, and then heard the Dragon yelp in pain, and fall to the ground face-first. "Hey, what-"

"That won't kill him, but hopefully he'll understand how nasty mana overload can be."

"So you just did that to educate him," Saturn said, with a face that made it clear she knew it was, at most, a partial truth.

"Well, I also hate being caught off guard. So yeah, he pissed me off a bit."

"That's what I figured."

The Dragon staggered up. "Ow. Okay, lesson learnt, don't make the Elders angry."

"I'm technically a Younger, but yes, you shouldn't surprise those who have decades of training on you. See, first day of training, and he's already learning."

Serenity shook her head at that. "Sometimes, you remind me of Hakko."

* * *

"Only a few years until that thing gets to our system."

Aiko nodded. "We'll stop it."

Yukiko smiled. "Yeah, you will."

"Don't say that. I didn't marry a weakling. I married the strongest non-Senshi mage on Earth. You could make Galaxia break a sweat."

"... Sorry. Anyhow, I'm going to go see Usagi tonight. The older one."

"Huh? Did she summon you?"

"No. I just decided that I do want to spend eternity with you."

Aiko hugged her. "I'll go with you. Fubuki was going to dad's house after school anyways."

* * *

Serenity listened to Yukiko's request. "Yes, I can do that. Hana was also interested in immortality and I was happy to grant that wish. However, just like I warned her... This isn't true immortality. You just won't die of old age."

"I know that."

"Good, and also... This isn't something I can take away later on. So I need to ask you... Are you sure about this?"

"I was aware of death since I was a child. Dad died when I was five, and I know mom tried her best to look happy, but... It's not death that I fear, but leaving Aiko behind. If I die fighting something, protecting what I care about, then so be it, but I don't want to let time be what defeats me."

Serenity smiled sadly. "Wow, that was..."

Aiko noticed a tear running down the Queen's cheek. "Usagi?"

"I'm fine, a 'yes' could have been enough for me but... Yukiko, I hope you two live a very long time and enjoy it."

"So?"

Serenity smiled. "It's done."

"Just like that?"

"You won't feel different at all right now, but in two or three centuries, you'll know it worked."

"Thanks. We're always asking you for favors, kinda makes me feel-"

"I don't need anything. Seeing my friends happy is enough. And also... Yuki, it's not just Aiko who would miss you if you were gone."

"... Guess you're right."

Serenity looked out the window. "We have visitors."

"What?"

"A small army of aliens. Not here to make friends."

"Are they strong?"

"Not really. Weaker than a Planet Senshi."

"Well, then-"

. Serenity made a 'screen' appear floating im mid air. "Chibi?"

"Mother, those aliens that just arrived... Can I ask you to leave them to us?"

"You could kill them by glaring at them."

"Let me rephrase that. I want to use them as a test for the Youngers. Their parents are okay with that."

Serenity considered it for a minute. If their parents saw no problem with that... Neither Hisako nor Hikaru were kids, they had trained for years. And Takamaru was young, but he had been training for a few months now. "I see no problem with that request. Tell them I said good luck."

"Will do."

* * *

Younger Venus had never seen so many creatures in one place before. The aliens were tall, muscular and red. They only looked human in the way they stood on their legs, as they had four arms, no nose, and a small, lipless mouth. One of them, whose armor was more adorned than the others, was shouting at them. "Should we call Aunt Ami?"

Moon shrugged. "No, mom already told me they are here to invade. They may think this is the capital of our world."

"Are you sure we can take on so many of them?"

"You won't need to. I'll be the 'tank' for this one."

"Tank?"

"It's an old term from games. Let's just say I'll be a decoy and keep most of them busy, and you can take care of the rest."

Mars and Venus nodded. "Right."

Moon smiled humorlessly as she walked forwards. Sure, they had trained for this, as far as fighting went, they were ready. But this would be their first battle, and they would have to kill many of these aliens. That's her other reason to be there, to see their reaction, and help if things got messy. She still remembered her first real kill. Sure, it had been one of those 'Gale' creeps, but even then, she froze when she realized she had ended a life.

Many of the aliens saw her advancing and rose their weapons. She glared at them as she let her full power flare. She knew they would not understand her words, so she simply run to them.

Dragon Saturn gasped as Moon was hit by at least a hundred beams. "Moon!"

Moon looked back as the aliens got ready to attack again, and she was quite unharmed. "They can't hurt me, but be careful, if you get hit a few times, they could knock you out."

The Dragon nodded. "Got it." He summoned his swords and looked at the aliens. "Can't let her get all the fun. Twilight Requiem."

Venus saw a large ghost pass through several aliens, but saw the Dragon was staring at them in shock as they fell to the ground, dead. "Taka, focus!"

"Uh, yeah. I just-"

Mars frowned. "Talk later, fight now."

Moon saw that and sighed. Hisako had seen death, quite close, at a very young age. Maybe that made it easier for her to deal with it. In any case, the trio fought hard, and soon the army of a few thousands had been reduced to a very small group of quite scares aliens. Moon wasn't even fighting now, these kids, no, these Senshi, needed no babysitting in a fight.

"Can't they see they're losing?"

"Maybe they're too proud to admit defeat."

Venus noticed something. The one with the different armor was still around, and still shouting orders. "If you kill the ant queen, the other ants will run away."

Mars knew what her friend meant as she saw her run straighr at the group, dodging their shots. "Always showing off..."

Venus leapt over one of the soldiers, jumping straight at the 'boss,' who barely dodged her. "Okay, you're good." She summoned her talisman - a spear - and tried again. This time, she managed to stab through the creature, who smiled despite the pain. "I win."

"Sh'ja gla'she."

Venus didn't know what the alien meant, but saw him holding a small ball. It had a display with strange symbols, which got smaller and then vanished, one by one. Almost like-

Mars was fighting a trio of aliens, but she heard the explosion, and saw her friend lying on the ground, near the source. She could be hurt, or worse. "Hikaru!"

Moon heard the shout and winced. Mars was cutting through any alien unfortunate enough to be standing in her path, with just her bare hands. But most aliens were already retreating, so Venus had been right - their leader's death had broken these soldiers' will to fight. "Hisa, calm down!"

Mars had already reached her friend. "Hikaru, no..."

Moon appeared near them and grimaced before quickly summoning her communicator. "Hotaru, Venus is down."

Saturn appeared next to Moon, wasting no time on socials as she started healing her. "She's barely alive. What happened?"

"The leader of those aliens had a bomb of some sort with him. Might have used it to try and knock her out, but it destroyed him."

Venus woke up and heard that. "I had already stabbed him through. That was a suicide, not an escape tactic."

Mars stared at her sternly. "You idiot, what were you thinking?"

"We won, didn't-"

"Shut up!" Mars shouted. "You could have died! Why didn't you tell me your plan? Do you really need to show off like that?"

"I- Sorry." Venus staggered up. "Sorry I made you worry."

Mars saw her friend was about to cry, and sighed. She couldn't stay mad at her. She hugged her and then smiled at her. "Anyone would get worried seeing the one they love getting hurt like that."

Venus stood frozen there as Mars looked at her. "Hisa, did you just say-"

Mars interrupted her with a soft kiss on the lips. "That maybe did turn into a yes after all."

Venus hugged her, then saw Moon and Saturn were staring at them. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, but we still need to go report the results to the Queen once you're done."

Mars frowned. "Do we really have to go?"

"Well-"

"Chibi, let's leave them alone for now. I'm sure the Queen will understand their reason to breach protocol."

"Good point, it's not like mom follows protocol a lot."

Dragon Saturn blinked. "What about me?"

"Go back home, Ami must be worried sick."

"Okay." He turned to his two friends. "You look cute together."

Mars blushed as Dragon Saturn left. "That kid is too smart for his age."

Moon nodded. "Anyhow, we'll leave you alone. Have fun."

"We will."

Saturn blinked at Venus' words. "Yeah, try not to have too much fun."

* * *

**A/N:** They don't make alien invasion fleets like they used to.

The title? I regret nothing.


	6. Legendary creatures

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 6: Legendary creatures.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: February 26, 2019_

* * *

Minako Aino was quite famous. Even after becoming one of Crystal Tokyo's "rulers," she was still very popular world-wide, both as an actress and a Senshi. So it was not strange that she had taken care of the "public relationships" for the city. Keeping false rumors at bay and spearheading any announcement from the city was something she had grown to enjoy.

And today was no exception. It was almost a war zone, on one side, three Senshi, on the other, a few dozen reporters, from many different countries. But it wasn't Minako who was leading the 'battle' this time - she was there just to help her friends.

Ami cleared her throat and gave the room a polite, if calculated, smile. "Good afternoon, I don't think I need to introduce myself, everyone knows the Senshi. But not many outside our city know what we do inside the city. My job, between alien invasions, is to lead the city's research department, founded by both me and my husband "

"That would be me," Terry said from besides her.

"So why did we call this press meeting? We had a meeting with the lead research entities of other countries weeks ago, and as we expected, rumors have been started about it. So we want to make what we're working on public knowledge. We Senshi have a mission to protect mankind, though in this century that term doesn't quite work anymore. Human, youma, immortal aliens, and even humans who started as something else, are all part of the 'mankind' we protect."

Terry smiled at that last bit. "The thing is, this planet is not healthy enough. Mankind has always dreamed of reaching the stars, but can we really think about moving when we can't even keep our own home clean?"

"So this is our current project." As Ami said that, a hologram appeared floating in front of her, a satellite. "This machine will be put on orbit and, slowly but relentlessly, clean the atmosphere."

"How much will that cost-"

Minako stood up, looking at the man who had just interrupted her friend. The glare only lasted a split second, but it was effective. "Please wait until they are done explaining. They'll answer your questions gladly."

Terry smiled. "Cost? We were getting there. The cost for Crystal Tokyo will be relatively high, but we won't charge for the service."

Ami continued. "As I said, our mission is to protect the people of this world. We won't be able to do that if everyone dies because of contamination. If this satellite works, we'll start working on ways to dispose of other forms of contamination. In fact, even Senshi have a limit - we wouldn't survive in a fully polluted world, either."

"Make no mistake, we're not asking for permission, nor will we care if a country does not want their part of the atmosphere cleaned. That satellite will be launched next month, and it will cleanse the atmosphere."

"So, that is the announcement," Minako said. "Questions?" A reporter rose her hand, and Minako nodded. "Go ahead."

"You said the satellite will be launched, but how? Crystal Tokyo has no shuttle launching facilities."

"I think 'launching' is the wrong term," Ami admitted. "The satellite will be carried up and set into orbit by my very good friend Makoto Kino, Sailor Jupiter."

Another reporter rose his hand. "She'll fly up there carrying a satellite and then place it in orbit?"

"The satellite will make all adjustments needed for a low orbit. Jupiter just needs to get it up there."

Minako smiled. "I know what the problem is. Yes, she is just that strong. I once saw her stop a falling building and prop it back into place. All ten floors of it. With one arm."

Ami sighed at that. Yes, Makoto was almost too strong to believe.

* * *

The younger Usagi knew the day would arrive eventually, but it was still surprising. Standing there, in front of her, was Younger Saturn. Her daughter, Kyouko. A Senshi at the age of eight. "Congratulations, Kyouko."

Hotaru looked at the young girl. A part of her mind found the combination of violet skirt and bow, and dark pink hair, to be weird. She told that part of her mind to shut up. "Can you only use Saturn's power?"

Kyouko turned back to normal, and smiled as her suit appeared again, only this time the skirt and bows were pink. And then she went back to normal again, and called her powers again, this time wearing a suit with gray skirt and bows. "Look mom, I'm like Taka."

Usagi smiled as she summoned both her Earth and Moon powers. "And like me. But remember, using more than one at a time could be dangerous."

The young girl nodded and went back to normal. "So, now I can go train-"

"Are you really ready for that?"

"Grandma told me you trained a lot when you were young, and that's why you're so strong. I want to be as strong as you."

Hotaru frowned. "Sure, ignore me."

Usagi looked at her daughter. "Kyouko, Hotaru is also a strong Senshi."

Kyouko realized why Hotaru was upset. "Oh, I... I want to be as strong as both of you."

Hotaru patted her daughter's hair. "And you will be."

* * *

Rei saw Hisako was in a sour mood as she walked in. Thankfully their house's door was built to resist being slammed by a Senshi. "Hisa, what's wrong?"

"Today at school... I was having lunch with Hikaru, and she kissed me."

Rei smiled at that. "She's just reckless. Did you get in trouble for it?"

Hisako sighed. "It may sound silly, but the reason I'm upset is that we didn't even get a warning. I've seen other students get suspended for a few days, for more innocent kisses."

More innocent? Rei didn't dare asking. "I see. It's not silly, I understand. Do you really want them to punish you for that?"

"Not really, but my classmates were glaring at me for the rest of the day, and Hikaru told me her classroom was also like that. I hate when people plays favorites. It's why I got bullied before. I don't want to have to play another round of 'dodge the morons.'"

"I'll talk to the principal. I don't think he'll ignore a request from me. But are you sure? This is going to be your last year in school. You won't see Hikaru at school after that."

"We're going to go to the same college."

"But you'll be two years ahead."

"No, I'll wait for her."

Rei sighed. "Let's pretend I agree with that. What are you two going to study?"

"We've both liked videogames since we were kids, so we thought we could start our own studio and make games for a living."

"I see." Rei looked at her. "Being a Senshi is far from a full time job, so it's nice to know you already know what to do. But taking two years off-"

"I'll get a job in the meantime."

"Hisa, you still haven't told me the real reason why you want to wait."

"I want us to go through college together. I am always two steps ahead of her, in everything we do, and most of the time it's not my fault. For once, I would like to walk side by side with her. To be her equal, not someone she needs to catch up with."

Rei blinked at that. "I... Didn't know you felt that way. Have you told her about this, about waiting?"

"We decided on our goal, but I didn't want to tell her until I knew I was allowed to do it. Didn't want to bring her hopes up in vain."

"Well, knowing your reasons, I don't see a reason to forbid you to do it, as long as you don't slack around."

"Thanks, mom!"

"But your father may disagree with me on this."

"I..."

"Don't worry. You know he's the 'good cop' in this family."

Hisako chuckled at that. "Yeah."

* * *

The day had finally come. The Star Eater was about to reach the outer 'dwarf planets.' The Senshi had to risk detection by the Nemesians. It could be bad for the timelines if the creature ate the planet Nemesis. Not to mention it would be very bad for Naru and Tsuki.

But there was still one small issue to take care of, and as usual, Younger Moon was the one dealing with it. "Hisako, Hikaru, Takamaru, you're coming with us. Tsuki, Kyouko, stay here."

"But mom-"

"Kyouko Tsukino, stop it."

"... Why? Am I not training for this?"

"Yes. But you aren't strong enough yet."

"It's not fair!"

Saturn was glad she had decided to tag along. "Please, we would love to see you fight too, but this monster is... It could kill any of us. It could even be immune to our attacks. We can't bring you two there."

Kyouko sighed. "I... Can you promise me you'll be back?"

Moon looked at her. "I never break my promises, so... I can't promise you that. But we'll protect you and this world." She hugged her daughter and then looked up. "We can't waste much more time."

Saturn looked at Tsuki. That girl was quite the silent type, hardly ever complaining, or showing her feelings. "You okay?" The girl nodded. "You know, I don't think you should just bottle up your feelings. I was like you, when I was your age. It's okay to cry."

Kyouko looked at her. "Mom..."

"We can't stay here any longer. We need to go kill that thing." Moon looked at her daughter. "I... Promise we'll all make it back. Us, the other Youngers, everyone."

"Usagi?"

Moon looked at Saturn. "It may be okay to cry, but I want to see them smile instead."

Saturn looked at the two young girls. "We'll be right back."

As the two vanished, Kyouko saw Tsuki's eyes watering, and hugged her. "Don't worry, your mom and dad will be fine."

"How can you be sure?"

"Because mom never breaks her promises."

* * *

Younger Venus looked at the creature slowly making its way to the outermost planetoids. It was hard to see the orange gas cloud as a creature, but they had both heard enough about it. To think a "baby" of that species had - as legends said - made Sailor Galaxia struggle, was frightening. To know what they were facing now was an adult, was-

She blinked as Younger Mars kissed her. "For good luck," her girlfriend said. But she knew what the real goal had been, it had taken her out of her pessimistic train of thoughts. No, they could beat this bug, they had to. She wanted to keep her own promise.

The two Plutos appeared right then. "We'll soften that monster up for you." True, the two Pluto were at Holy level, but they were much stronger than most Senshi at their level. Setsuna was, obviously, an ancient Senshi, but few knew that her daughter was a few centuries older than she looked.

The wave of energy the two shot was nearly invisible, but its effects were clear. A rather large hole was pierced through the creature's body. Elder Pluto looked at the other Senshi. "I know the legends, but no legend is ever a hundred percent true. When Galaxia fought a World Eater, she was an Eternal Senshi, as were most of her allies. And Star Eaters aren't much more powerful than their 'baby' forms. They just grow bigger and need to eat bigger things."

The creature had finally noticed its foes. Or, to be precise, it had realized they were a threat. And threats were bad for it, so it acted.

"Don't let those things catch you," Mercury warned.

Serenity sighed. Despite the warning, those tendrils were massive, and moved way faster than they should. Several Senshi were caught, and not even Jupiter could break free. Ami had shown her the legends, she had read them. She knew that thing could eat even their souls. All the Senshi - along with Aiko, Hana and Yuki who had tagged along - were shooting at the creature, but the damage they were doing wasn't stopping it.

'So, you're going to do something reckless and selfless again, aren't you?'

Serenity smiled. 'You know me, Gin.' She looked at the creature. "I won't let some orange blob eat my friends."

Moon had been trying to attack a tendril that had caught Saturn, but heard her mother's words, and sensed the power spike. "Mom, what are you doing?"

"My job," Serenity said with a smile. "Holy Planet Attack!"

Moon heard what sounded like a scream at first, as the creature was hit. But no, that was no scream, it was the sound of the creature's body slowly exploding from within.

"Usagi!" Moon heard her father's shout and winced. Was she dead? No, but she could she her energy was dangerously low.

Saturn went to check on her. "Shit. Terry, Takamaru, I'll need help for this."

Younger Mars slowly floated to Moon. "I know it must hurt a lot to see her like that, but she saved me and Hikaru, and everyone else. Hikaru was close to being carried inside that thing, and I thought I would lose her..."

Moon gave the younger girl a hug as she sobbed, then saw Younger Venus float to them. "She's all yours."

Serenity woke up right then. "That hurt a lot more than I thought."

Elder Mars floated to her. "You just killed that thing in one shot. That was impressive. Don't ever do it again."

"I second that."

Serenity looked to the side, to Endymion who was smiling at her. "I just couldn't let anyone die. You know me."

"I do," Endymion said. "You were always foolishly selfless." He let those words hang enough to make Serenity frown at him, then smiled. "It's one of your best qualities."

Moon looked at Saturn, then at Serenity. "Well, time to go see if Kyouko dehydrated herself crying yet."

Nemesis sighed. "How was Tsuki?"

"Putting up a front, as usual," Saturn said. "I'm sure she started crying as soon as we left."

Dragon Lilith nodded. "Sounds like her."

* * *

A few months had passed since that battle. While Rei liked peace, there were still things to take care of outside her two jobs. She was sitting in a table at Mako's main restaurant, trying to figure out what to do about Hisako. Just like her, Hisako knew most job offers she got were because of her title, not her skills. Even within Crystal Tokyo, people would hire a Senshi in a blink. So Hisako had been 'slacking off' for a few months now, but Rei could not blame her for it.

Mako walked out of the kitchen and noticed her friend's brooding. She was pretty sure she knew the reason, and, she realized, there was a way to fix both their problems. "Hey Rei, is your girl still looking for a job?"

"Yeah. It's just like when I was looking. Some music store wanted to hire her last week, even though Hisako cares little about music unless it's from a game."

"I see. So they want her because a Senshi brings in customers. Well, I had one of my waiters quit last week - going to be a model, she said - so I was looking for someone to fill in."

"I'll tell her about it."

"If she wants to, I'll even teach her some cooking. She'll be the perfect wife for Hikaru."

"From what I've seen, she's going to be the husband," Rei joked.

"Nothing wrong with a husband who can cook. Kage takes care of the north restaurant, and he's quite good."

* * *

"Is that the planet?"

"Yes. The other two ships sent their final transmission from there. The planet has plenty of resources, and millions of slaves waiting to be enslaved.

"And yet, two of our ships were lost there. Let's observe it from a safe distance for the time being."

* * *

**A/N:** Another alien invasion incoming. How unexpected.


	7. Not them again!

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 7: Not them again!**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: February 26, 2019_

* * *

"Triple Shot."

Moon dodged the ball of death, moon and earth energy. It was really like a mini-Sailor Planet Attack, and packed enough of a punch that even the two more experienced Youngers didn't want to be hit by it. She was both proud and annoyed by that... Her daughter was a Cosmic Senshi, but her attacks could be stronger than Guardian Senshi ones. She was only ten, but could have kicked Rex around.

"Damn... Tired."

There was a catch, of course. Her 'triple' form was too draining to use for more than a few seconds. "You need to train your powers individually. The more used you get to them, the longer you'll be able to use them together." She powered down and helped her daughter up.

Hotaru walked to them. "But you should also do other things, find a hobby. Being a Senshi is not a full-time job."

"So that's why you work?"

"It keeps us busy while we don't have anything to fight."

Usagi nodded. "I was a bit surprised when she told me what she had decided to study, back then, but Hotaru is a very good teacher." She was also one of the few teachers who didn't try to impress Senshi by giving their kids good grades for no reason.

"And Chibi is good with a brush," Hotaru said. The older Usagi was a good writer, who even now kept writing, but few knew the younger Usagi was a good artist. For decades now, she had been using three different pseudonyms, working on different styles of painting for each one.

"So, what do you want to be when you grow up? Besides being a Senshi, I mean."

"I'm gonna be Tsuki's wife."

Hotaru was sure it had been decades since she had seen her wife frozen in shock. "Chibi, don't tell me you never thought that could happen."

Usagi smiled awkwardly. "Uh, I did, but..." She wanted to say it, the old 'you're too young to think about that' line, but she had been Kyouko's age when she realized what she felt for Hotaru. "I'll blame my genes for that. Have you told Tsuki you like her?"

Kyouko nodded. "Yep. But she thought I was joking. Kind of hurt."

Hotaru hugged her. "Not many kids at your age think seriously about that." She looked at Usagi, who smiled. "But if you have patience, you can tell her later on, when you know she'll understand. She may even grow to like you that way too."

* * *

Mako saw the younger woman walk to the door. "You're really leaving, huh?"

Hisako stopped and turned to her. "I have a promise to keep. I won't lie, I liked working here, and I also had fun cooking, but..."

"Don't worry, I get it. Doing what you like with the one you love by your side? Go for it. It worked for me and Kage, after all."

"I'll come visit once in a while."

"Good. Now go, your future wife must be waiting."

Hisako blushed at that. "Yeah. Thanks for everything, Mako. See you later."

Mako saw her open the door and smiled sadly. "See you later, kid."

* * *

Serenity looked at the reports with mixed feelings. True, Michiru and Haruka were doing an excellent job outside the city, but she hated seeing them, alone, branded as criminals for it. She knew to fight the real root of the problem they were trying to fight it could take ages.

'Maybe you will have to start a war to end all wars.'

"Don't even joke about it."

'Sorry.'

Serenity suddenly looked up. "I guess that must be their third ship."

Gin could sense what Serenity meant. 'Oh you've got to be joking. Not those guys again!'

"Gin?"

'You only fought them once. I had to deal with their big ship, and two of these. I really hope this is their last one.'

"I'll have to tell the others. We'll need all the mages we can get."

'At risk of angering you, making their ship explode from a distance is an option.'

"Not for me. They must have millions of innocents with them."

'Right. Do it the hard way, then.'

* * *

Hours later, the Senshi were meeting in a large room, one which had been nicknamed the 'War Room' as it was used for battle planning. Serenity had just finished telling the others about the incoming 'visitors.'

"So they are back. What's the plan?"

"We wait for their carrier ships to come. They will attack several cities at once, so we need to be ready to defend them all."

"Why not just go to their main ship now and destroy them all?"

Serenity looked at Hikaru. "Because their carriers are filled with their cannon fodder. Slaves from other races, from countless worlds, who help them invade other worlds because the alternative is death."

"I know most of you," Usagi said to the Youngers, "have already killed evil beings before. But we're talking about innocents here. Millions of them. Could you still do it?"

"That is why we'll wait for them to leave the main ship," Ami guessed.

Serenity nodded. "I've already told the Youma and the Demom Hunters about it. Our forces will spread and minimize the damage their carriers could do. The Younger will stay here and defend the city. And me and my daughter are going to go to their main ship and deal with the main enemy."

"Why only you two?"

"I could do it on my own, but I may need someone to bring me back." She looked at Hotaru. "If we have to spread our forces too thin, you'll be in charge of the city's defense."

"Do we really need a chaperon?" Hisako muttered.

Rei nodded. "Hisa, this is not going to be a small scale battle. Each of their carriers has thousands of pilots, of ships ready to come out as a swarm. Don't overestimate your powers."

"... Sorry."

Serenity smiled. "I doubt those ships can individually be a threat, even to our youngest members, but there may not be a moment when it's just one ship shooting at you. Be careful, everyone. That means the Elders, too."

* * *

As expected, he aliens did not target only Crystal Tokyo. There were at least a dozen carriers, and they attacked as many large cities around the world. Younger Mars looked up at the sky. "I see mom wasn't exaggerating."

Saturn nodded. 'Use your weakest blasts. We don't need to be flashy in this battle, we need to last for as long as we can." She looked at Younger Venus and Younger Saturn. "That means you two."

Younger Saturn seemed ready to protest, but then her suit's colors changed to gray. "Got it."

Younger Venus smiled as she saw the ships approaching. "Let's try weaker than weak. Wisp!"

Saturn saw a ship explode and nodded. "Good idea. Use Hunter magic, these ships are weak."

Younger Dragon Mercury smiled. "This is going to be fun."

"Your definition of fun worries me, Taka," Younger Nemesis said with a sigh.

* * *

Venus looked at her Dragon. "Been a while."

"I'll go talk to mom when this is done," the Dragon said. "Wait until you meet our newest Prime."

A girl walked up to them. "That would be me."

Venus looked at the woman. Even though she was an adult now, she could still recognize her. "Hello Tia."

The woman nodded. "Prime Huntress Sylph, at your service."

Venus noticed something. "Hey, why so stiff? It's still me, Minako."

"Sorry, you've got more power than I remember. How's the little one?"

"The 'little one' is in college."

"Heh. Time flies, as they say."

* * *

It had been pretty easy to find the ship, and to teleport to it. It was also all too easy for them to get to the core. "I miss having to dodge."

Moon smiled at Serenity. Yes, these creatures kept shooting at them both, but they didn't feel it. "Me too. So, what are we doing here?"

Serenity scanned the corridor. "We have to get to the core and overload it."

"Do we need to go there to do that?"

Serenity sighed. "No, I already found it."

* * *

"Sir, the so-called Sen'shi are not reacting as expected."

The Nh'Prowr looked at the soldier. "Explain."

"They are not fighting back, just standing there and letting us shot. Yet neither of them seems to be hurt, after several barrages of our weapons."

The alien looked to the side. "Do we have a visual?"

"Yes," another aliens said, and an image of the two Earthlings appeared in the command room's main monitor.

"Send in the-"

"Sir, one of them is charging an attack."

* * *

Moon looked at the rapidly cooling, massive dust cloud that had, a minute ago, been the Kh'sun's last mothership. "Well, that was almost stupidly easy."

"I agree. I'm starting to see what you mean by 'living in a boring city.'"

"Let's go back, then."

Serenity smiled. "You really worry about her. That's good."

"About Kyouko? Yeah. I try to play the 'mentor' role while training, but in a real war like this, I can't help but worry."

"Sorry for dragging you along, then. By the way, your little girl seems to be following your footsteps when it comes to love."

"Heh. Yeah, we've know for a while. She's confessed twice to Tsuki, but that girl thinks she's playing around."

"Maybe you should 'butt in' this time around?"

Moon shrugged. "I'll talk to Naru about it. She and Umino haven't noticed it yet."

Serenity paused for a second. "And then there's also Takamaru."

"Huh? What about him?"

"Oh, you hadn't noticed. He... Ami once told me he only likes those who are either powerful, or those he sees as smart. Kyouko is powerful, and quite smart. Do the math."

"... Wow. I never knew that."

"But Tsuki is also smart, and quite powerful."

"... Wait, so he has a crush on both of them?"

"Yes. So things could go wrong in many ways."

"Well, let's just go back. I'll figure out what to do - if anything- later."

* * *

Usagi looked at the finished painting and nodded. Another fine work of 'A. C. Ibushi.' It was quite amazing how well hiding your secrets in plain sight worked.

One week had passed since the Kh'sun's final invasion. The world had mostly forgotten about the Senshi's role in their previous invasion - or chose not to remember - but this time around, they had earned the respect of many. Specially once Serenity's one hidden plan came to light. It was not that she had left the Younger Senshi guarding their city to protect them. The world saw it different. The Senshi backed their words with actions, sending the older, more experienced and powerful members out, leaving their own city to a bunch of 'kids.'

The world owed them big. Serenity wouldn't call in that favor, but the world didn't need to know that.

She saw her daughter walk in, looking upset. "Kyouko, did something happen?"

"I... Taka told me he likes me."

"Oh... What did you tell him?"

"I couldn't answer. I always see him with Tsuki, I thought he liked her. I don't know what to do."

"Do you like him?"

"As a friend, not the way I like Tsuki."

"Remember how it hurt when Tsuki thought you were joking? Well, confessing and having the other person not answer either yes or no is worse."

"I... Sorry."

"It's not me you need to apologize," Usagi said, then sighed. "And Takamaru likes Tsuki too."

"Huh?"

"You can't choose who you fall in love with, but sometimes your heart chooses more than one person."

Kyouko sighed. "Mom, can you come with me?"

"I can take you there, but you need to tell him how you feel yourself."

"I know. I just want you to stop me if I try to run away again."

* * *

Ami opened the door and saw Usagi and her daughter there. "Hello."

"Is Taka here? I need to talk to him. To apologize to him."

"I see... He's in his room."

Kyouko walked in, then sighed. "Mom, stay here. I can't- I won't be a coward."

"Good."

Ami smiled as the girl walked further into the house. "Taka's luck with girls is that bad, huh?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well..."

* * *

Kyouko stood outside the door for almost one minute, collecting her thoughts. "Taka? It's Kyouko. Can I come in?"

"It's not locked."

His tone was cold, but she couldn't blame him. She walked in and saw him glaring at her. "Sorry for being a coward. I just... I always thought you liked Tsuki. I can't return your feelings, because I-"

"You like her too, huh?" Takamaru said, his glare turning into a sad stare. "Oh well, I guess I have bad luck when it comes to love."

"Why you say that? You could still-"

"Confess to Tsuki? I already did. Three days ago."

Kyouko pouted. "So I was the backup plan, huh?"

Takamaru shook his head. "No, I just saw a chance to tell her. It could have been you."

"So, she also said no?"

Takamaru nodded. "I am a bit upset, at both of you, but I guess it's fair, you confessed to her first."

"What does that mean?"

"She told me she already had someone she liked, but that she didn't deserve to confess to that person, because she had already childishly ignored their confession twice."

"That..." Kyouko blushed. "Are you okay with telling me this?"

"I like both of you, but I'm not so mean as to stand between you. If I didn't tell you that bit of information, Tsuki would probably keep playing cool until we're in college. Honestly, good luck, Kyouko."

"Thanks. Friends?"

"Friends."

* * *

Kyouko walked back to the entrance. "Mom, sorry to drag you here. I'll go see Tsuki now."

"Want me to go with you?"

"No, I want to tell her properly this time. I'll be fine."

Ami smiled as Kyouko vanished. "They grow up fast."

"Too damn fast. Can't you science guys invent something to fix that?"

Ami chuckled. "I don't think the Queen would authorize that project."

* * *

Naru opened the door and saw Kyouko there. "Hello Kyouko. Looking for Tsuki?"

"Yep."

Tsuki walked out from behind Naru. "I'm here."

"Can we go for a walk?"

Tsuki looked at her mother, who nodded. "Sure, let's go."

Once they were far enough, Kyouko sighed. "Takamaru confessed to me today."

Tsuki gasped. "He did?"

"That face you're making is all the proof I need..."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"I rejected his confession, and he told me he had confesses to you too, and you told him-"

"Damn that boy."

"Tsuki, you already know how I feel about you. I said it twice, because I'm that serious about this. I would do it again, but don't you think it's unfair?"

Tsuki stood there, frozen in place, for nearly one minute. She knew? She still felt the same? She wanted to talk, but she couldn't. Her mouth wouldn't move.

"Don't worry, I'll wait." Kyouko said, and started to walk, but felt something pull on her sleeve. She turned to see Tsuki, holding her by the shirt, and looking quite mortified. "Tsuki..."

"I've always been bad at telling others how I feel, but you're right, asking you to confess again wouldn't be fair." She smiled sadly. "Running away now, or making you wait, would be unfair to Taka too. I like you, Kyouko. A lot."

Kyouko blushed, then hugged her. "I like you too, Tsuki."

Right then, Hisako and Hikaru walked by, and noticed the two girls. "Hi!" They both noticed the younger girls were blushing, and made an educated guess. "You look cute together."

"... Thanks."

"Does Taka know?"

"Yeah."

"Oh. No snow storms yet, so he's not over-reacting."

Hikaru gave her girlfriend a short glare. "You can be quite a jerk, Hisa."

"Thanks, I try."

* * *

**A/N:** Know that moment you realize you never really bothered giving many of the Senshi a 'civilian' job? Yeah. Fixed it for a few of them here.

As for Usagi "hiding her secret in plain sight," just look at the pseudonym mentioned, A. C. Ibushi. Took me five seconds to come up with that one. Anagrams are fun.


	8. The calm before the storm

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 8: The calm before the storm.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: March 18, 2019_

* * *

"Usagi, you've tried this before, but our answer is still the same."

It wasn't often, nowadays, that Serenity could be seen wearing civilian clothing, but she had made it a habit to not be Queen Serenity of Crystal Tokyo, but Usagi Tsukino, when she visited her parents. However, she knew soon those visits would be over. Her friends had all avoided death's favorite method. Gin had confirmed it a decade ago, thanks to exposure to 'her,' all the 'old' Senshi stopped aging at around their thirties.

But other persons they cared about were not affected. Sure, Hana and Yukiko had wanted it, but others had refused politely. Her friends were in their late fourties now, and had begun to see the bad side of their immortality.

And that was why she had, once again, gone back to her old home, or at least the exact replica of it she had created along with the rest of the city. "Mom, why?"

Ikuko smiled at her. "We were born knowing our lives were not eternal. Humans learn to live with that."

"Sorry for not being human."

Kenji looked at his daughter. "Don't say that, you know your mother didn't mean it that way."

"I... Don't want to lose you."

Ikuko looked at her. "It's good to know you're kind enough to ask. You are the most powerful being in this world, and I doubt you _need_ that permision."

Usagi walked to the door. "I'm not selfish enough to force immortality into others. It's your decision to make. I just... I don't know if I can stand losing you both."

"We're still here."

"I know. I'll visit as often as I can. And please, think about what I told you."

Ikuko saw her daughter about to leave and sighed. "Usagi, immortality... For us, it sounds like a curse. We can't see it as anything else. Sorry."

Usagi turned to her as her clothes morphed into her royal gown. "Don't apologize. Lately, I've started to see it as a curse, too."

* * *

The younger Usagi had inherited her mother's skill at reading people. Which was probably why her mother had not bothered hiding the fact she had been crying for a while. "Mom, what happened?"

"My parents, they don't want immortality. They say to them it would be a curse. I..."

"... So that's why you never talked about them."

"Huh?"

"In the future. I rarely, if ever, saw you angry. But one time I was curious, and asked why your parents weren't around. Your tone was quite cold, and your words clear. 'I don't want to talk about that.'"

"So they weren't around..." Serenity smiled sadly.

"Still, you weren't a sobbing mess, so I think you'll find a way to live on."

"Yeah..." Serenity frowned. "Did you come here just to chat?"

"No, I... Kyouko says she's hearing voices, in her mind. Since I cannot speak directly to Gin, I thought I would ask you."

Gin appeared near them. "If I knew what exactly makes it possible for your mother to hear me, I would tell you. However... Yes, the voice she hears is mine. Don't worry, I'm not whispering evil thoughts to her."

"Why can't she listen to you clearly?"

"This here," Gin said pointing at Serenity," is one hundred percent Moon Senshi. You and your daughter are not, and in theory that would make you both not able to listen to me. As I said, I don't know why I can talk to her. But maybe she's too young to listen as clearly as her grandma does."

Usagi nodded. "Even though I hear no voice, several times in the past, I felt like I could feel the crystal's intent."

"All Serenity can feel that," Gin said. "But yes, that happens when I try to help one who is in danger."

Usagi shrugged. "Yeah, I know, I'm not special enough for you."

Gin smiled. "A Senshi at six, who was also using a borrowed Ginzuishou for that, a dual Senshi at the age of nine, a time traveler, first Serenity to fall in love with a girl, and first case in human history of two women having a biological child. If I may be blunt, you're too damn special already."

"... Okay, a lot of good points there. Anyhow, don't pester my daughter too much, okay?"

"A direct request from a Serenity? I could never refuse it."

Usagi smiled, and looked at Serenity, who nodded. Despite her usual cynicism and sarcastic tone, one thing was painfully clear about Gin: She couldn't lie. It was like she was programmed to never lie to a Serenity. "Good, that's all I ask."

Gin frowned. "I shouldn't stay in this form much longer, so can I make a suggestion about Kyouko?"

"Yes?"

"Let me try to talk to her this way. Maybe that will let her 'hear me' better."

"Okay, we can try that."

* * *

Haruka was almost bored enough to go back to Tokyo. Their crusade had worked better than expected, and there were comparatively few terrorist groups still active. The threar of having two 'invincible' rogue Senshi was one not many were brave - or stupid - enough to ignore. Of course, that was affecting more than just the surface. One too many 'respectable' weapon factories had to shut down, and governments which had their economies reinforced by warmongering were forced to slowly, but surely, revise their finances and come up with other, less bloody ways to keep running.

Serenity had started the rumors of Senshi being invincible, but it was the two "rogues" who had confirmed it. One year ago, a group of 'honest businessmen' had sold a nuclear warhead to a group of 'freedom fighters' and convinced them to use it on the two Senshi. Of course, they were not Serenity. They didn't have a clue on how to drain such a weapon. So they took the best next option. They let it hit, after going far enough away from the ground. A satellite had filmed it, the bomb exploding a few meters away from them, and them not even flinching.

But that had also made their foes realize how pointless it was to fight. In the many years of fighting, they had caused no deaths, dodged no bullets. Their enemies seemed to have given up fighting. That, really, was the reason why they were bored.

They were also tired of being away from home. They had both grown close to the other Senshi, and while their role as "rogues" was their idea, perhaps it was time to give up the charade.

* * *

Kyouko looked at the woman. "Who are you?"

Gin nodded. "I know you can keep secrets, because I've been with you for a while... Even though you rarely use me in battle."

"Use you?" Kyouko turned to her mother and grandmother, who were both smiling. She was too used to what normal humans would call 'weird' to consider the obvious answers to her previous question impossible. "So she's either a Senshi I've never seen before, or... My Ginzuishou."

"Correction, I'm the Ginzuishou. All Ginzuishou are me."

"... Uh, nice to meet you, I guess?"

Gin smiled. "I've known you for your whole life, but it's good to finally speak to you in person. I am Gin."

Kyouko looked at her, then summoned her crystal. "The voice I've been hearing..."

"It's me. The 'me' you are linked to."

Serenity nodded. "I found out about Gin many years before you were born. Since Chibi couldn't speak to her directly, we thought it was something only I could do, but..."

"I think in a few years I'll be giving you advice too."

"And pestering you," Serenity added.

"That honesty is your most annoying trait," Gin muttered.

"Okay. This is good, I'll have to tell Tsuki I'm not crazy." She stopped and looked at Gin. "... Can I do that?"

"I'm no secret to the Elders, so I don't see a reason to hide it from your generation. Just be careful of not talking about me around civilians."

"Gotcha."

* * *

"It's not fair."

Yukiko smiled at her son. "I know how you feel. I've felt that way too. Neither of us is a Senshi, so you could blame us for it."

"Or suck it up and be happy to have the potential to be one of the strongest non-Senshi mages in the world."

"Big deal."

Yukiko sighed. "They might have been just training fights, but both me and Aiko managed to beat some of the Senshi. I beat Usagi a few times."

"You beat Serenity?"

"Not at her current level, but that's because we haven't fought in more than one decade."

"Wow. So even if I'm not a Senshi, I could still be as strong as one?"

Aiko nodded. "You'll have to train much harder than them."

Fubuki smiled. "I won't let Taka and the others leave me behind."

* * *

It wasn't often that the citizens of Crystal Tokyo saw danger. In fact, ever since the day the shield around the city rose, nothing life-threatening had happened.

Which was why, to the civilians, seeing a column of dark energy rise from one of the Senshi residences was more strange than frightening.

That was, until the house was quite rapidly vaporized by said energy. By the time Serenity reached the area, the citizens of Crystal Tokyo were already doing what they could do in such a situation: Try to put as much distance between themselves and danger as possible.

Serenity noticed something and grimaced. "Hotaru, Shingo is down."

Saturn appeared next to her. "Can't get to him with that storm."

Serenity nodded. "On it." She had never used this technique, but she had known it was there for a long time. She looked at the woman floating in mid-air, in the center of the dark beam, and shook her head. "Sorry, I can't let you do this, Hana."

Hana was confused. Her rage was still there, but her powers... They weren't there anymore? She looked at Serenity, then at Shingo, who was being healed by Hotaru, and winced. "I'm sorry, I couldn't-"

"Your powers aren't gone permanently, but I need to know what made you do this before I decide to unlock them again."

"My powers... What's the point in having them if I can't protect those I love?"

Terry and Ami appeared right then, followed a second later by Aiko and Yukiko. "Hana, what happened?"

"My parents... Some scumbag had been casing the mansion for a while, managed to get in and... Apparently he didn't mind shooting them on the way out, even if he got a lot of money off them."

Serenity paled. "That's..."

Hana looked Shingo, who was already up and looking at her. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine, you can still protect those you love from your rage."

Serenity nodded at that. It had not been a bubble of psichic power, like decades ago. Hana had managed to channel the energy upwards, to where it wouldn't hurt anyone. "I see no reason to keep your powers sealed."

"Please, keep them that way. A part of me wants to go search for thar scumbag and... No, I don't even know what I'll do when I see him. Can't decide on which punishment would be good enough."

Serenity looked up to the sky, then at her. "What you do with your power is your responsibility. You're my friend, and a part of me wants to stop you, but... I am not hypocritical enough to tell you not to try avenging your parents. Just... Make sure you won't regret whatever you choose to do next."

Hana looked at her, then at Shingo, then shrugged as she felt her powers return. "What I'll do? I'll go back to the States and hunt that asshole down. Maybe I'll stay and go on a hunting season."

Shingo looked at her. "I'm coming with you."

"Shingo, I don't want you to hate me, if you see what I-"

"I love all you are, both the light and the darkness. Nothing could change that."

"... Okay." She looked back and saw the house was back to normal, as if nothing had happened. "That-"

"Not trying to gloat, but doing that kind of things takes less effort to me, nowadays, than blinking."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

* * *

Days later, Haruka and Michiru were looking at the cityscape from atop the palace's tallest spire. "I can almost see why some people call this a utopia. Almost zero crimes, clean air and water, a shield that can shrug off our own attacks..."

Michiru nodded. "As boring as I remember it."

Haruka noticed something in the distance. "Oh, the kids are training today."

"Yeah." Although not as frequent as years eariler, there was sometimes action outside the city, and since most of the Youngers were at Eternal level, their training could be quite a show. "Think they'll mind if we take a closer look?"

"Let's go ask them," Haruka said, then the two women vanished.

* * *

Younger Mars could still remember back when she was the only one of the Youngers. Fifteen years had passed since then, and while training had slowed down, she never lost sight of her goal. Eternal level wasn't enough, specially when the youngest Younger could outgun her even as a Guardian Senshi.

"Triple Storm." Younger Saturn had not made a lot of changes to her attack as she 'leveled up.' It was always either a large ball of Death, Earth and Moon mana, or a barrage of smaller blasts. Still, getting hit by either was bad.

Moon saw two figures appear just as Mars barely dodged the barrage. "Oh, we've got tourists today."

Haruka shook her head at that. "I see you haven't changed." She looked at the two who were right now fighting. "Is that Kyouko? Damn, it's really been a long time since we last were here."

Younger Saturn was using one of her talismans (her staff) for support, as her triple form still drained her stamina quickly. "I... Gotta work on my endurance. Your win, Hisa."

Younger Mars frowned. "Stop showing off and you'll last longer."

"You know me."

Haruka looked at Moon. "She iss a lot like you back then..."

"Yeah."

Kyouko walked to them as Younger Venus and Younger Lilith started their own mock battle. "Who is- Oh, Uranus and Neptune? Nice to finally meet you."

Michiru smiled at her as she bowed politely. "We saw you once when you were a toddler, but you've grown into quite a warrior."

"A warrior who can't last long in battle is useless," Kyouko said with a sigh.

Moon saw Haruka and Michiru's questioning faces. "Her powers stacking up can make her powerful enough to be a threat to a Holy Senshi, but even after training for years, her body can't keep up with that. She's too stubborn to give up, though."

"Like mothers, like daughter," Haruka mused.

Michiru looked at Kyouko. "You know, if your powers only let you fight for a short time, then you should try to make the most of that. In a real battle, it could take a second to change a loss into a win."

Haruka nodded. "And there's no way a Sailor Moon can be 'useless.'"

Kyouko smiled. "Thanks. " She looked at the mock battle and saw it was already over. "Oh, Tsuki lost."

Younger Lilith walked to her, clutching her left arm, which had a nasty cut near the elbow. "I got careless."

Kyouko hugged her. "We'll beat those two one day."

The others noticed the cut in Lilith's arm closing, and Moon smiled. "Yeah, she likes to show off, just like me."

Michiru finally noticed something. "Where's Hotaru?"

"Taking care of a 'fan' of hers in Kyoto."

"Alone?"

"No, Aiko and Yukiko tagged along."

* * *

Phase was upset. Whoever it was that was causing trouble in this city, they covered their tracks well. "Still no clues on the whereabouts of the 'Soul Harvester.'" Saturn nodded. "We need to find him, her, or it, and deal with them as soon as possible."

Warwitch could understand Saturn's eagerness to find that... That monster. There was no other way to describe it. Whatever the 'Soul Harvester' was, it left no traces of a soul in their victims, so not even Saturn's powers could bring them back. "This job may be too big for us."

Phase looked at the data they had again. "Since the city of Kyoto asked for our help, I don't think they'll have a problem if we bring more Senshi here."

* * *

Elsewhere in the city, a different group was also busy planning. "The Senshi are here, we should lay low for a while."

"Lay low?" The only woman in the room almost shouted, causing the man to step back in fear. "Those utopian bitches are after me, but I will not hide like a coward. You can all stay hidden if you want, but I will show those freaks why they call me the Soul Harvester."

"Alma, be careful, they are said to be very powerful."

The woman smiled at the second man. "I just need to attack first. Don't worry, they won't stop me."

* * *

**A/N:** This 'Soul Harvester' girl is a new twist on an old plot device. Her name means "soul" in Spanish.


	9. Never enough Senshi

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 9: Never enough Senshi.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: March 25, 2019_

* * *

"Is mom going to be okay?"

Usagi looked at her daughter. It wasn't like she would have kept the nature of Hotaru's 'foe' secret, but it was still upsetting to see Kyouko like that. "Honestly? I can't be sure. This 'Soul Harvester' person has a type of technique that is hard to block, and unless Gin can pull that sort of miracle, it can't be undone."

'You there?'

'... Yes, and surprised you finally-'

'Can you do that?'

Usagi saw Gin appear, and looked at Kyouko. "Oh, right."

"Before you ask, or worry, I'm using your mother's energy for this."

"... Good."

Kyouko looked at Gin. "So?"

"The first time a Star Eater showed up, I helped that era's Serenity bring back the souls of those fallen fighting it. It killed that Serenity, but she... Well, there were Saturn Senshi back then."

"So you could-"

"Without seeing how exactly it works for this 'Soul Harvester' your mom is chasing, I can't be sure I could do it."

"Shit."

Usagi sighed. "I guess I'll have to go keep an eye on her."

"I'm going too."

"I don't think-"

"Mom, what the hell? I'm not a weakling, I'm not a kid, and I won't just sit around."

"She's a Serenity, no kidding."

"Gin, you're not helping."

"I know you all think I'm some alien being with no understanding of emotions, or how they could mess you up, but I do understand. Right now, Kyouko is being selfless, but far from reckless."

"That doesn't-"

"Usagi, you know I can't lie. I was not 'built' with that feature. So... Thinking as a mother is good, but in this case, think as a warrior for a minute."

Usagi closed her eyes for a few seconds. "I know what you mean. I am well aware that Kyouko is right now only second to me and mom. But in a case like this, power-"

"In a case like this..." Gin sighed. "Are you not aware of the Harvester's pattern?"

"It only attacks magic users," Usagi said. "Wait, that means... It can sense magic."

"And this 'Harvester' might be fine with having a Senshi and two very strong mages chasing it, but if we add two Serenities to that? It may make it act foolishly."

"Wait, if I go, it could attack me?"

Gin smiled. "You underestimate the effect magic can have in people who senses it. Specially if said people are aware it's not friendly. Of course, this 'Harvester' could be crazy enough to attack either of you, too."

Usagi sighed. "... Screw it. I'll let Hotaru and mom shout at me for it later on, but by Kyouko's age I was already fighting monsters and risking my life. Heck, her grandma killed a very strong demon being just as young, and with ridiculously low power, comparatively speaking."

"So...?"

"We're going to Kyoto."

Kyouko smiled. "Good. I'll go tell Tsuki-"

"She can't tag along."

"I know. I'm sure she'll understand."

* * *

Minutes later, Tsuki was giving her girlfriend a rather unconvincing glare. "I understand, but I am not okay with letting you go."

"Even mom-"

"I... Just be careful, okay?"

Kyouko gave her a hug. "I'll have four badass fighters near. I'll be fine."

Tsuki kissed her. "For good luck."

Kyouko blushed. "I..."

"Let's have our second kiss when you get back."

Kyouko smiled. "That's a promise."

* * *

The people living in Kyoto nowadays were almost used to 'mages' being something that happened. Some mages were good, there had been mages who stopped robberies, rescued people from fires, and other such heroics. But good and evil were always said to keep a balance, so there were also villains. This was true for most large cities in the world, but no other city had faced a threat as powerful as the Soul Harvester.

Well, except for Tokyo before it's 'Crystal' rebirth, but back then, magic was not as widespread.

Mai was an average teenager in the rather average Kyoto. She had never seen any magician up close, but magic was a thing that she could accept. She had none of her own, so her life was rather dull at times.

But as said above, she could accept magic... So when she saw three women - three Senshi - flying through the sky, it only took her a second to shrug the surprise off. It only hit her hours later, she had finally seen mages. Senshi, even. And from the suits, she knew two were Younger Moon and Saturn, but she didn't know who the youngest one was.

She still dismissed it as a random event. She had heard rumors of Senshi trying to find the Harvester, and with three of them being here, and one of them being Younger Moon, she knew that Harvester monster was screwed.

Yeah, that had just been a random moment of excitement in an otherwise normal life. Mai was not expecting her life to change, for better or for worse.

What Mai didn't know, was that life, at times, doesn't need you to expect changes. It just trows them at you when you least expect them.

* * *

Saturn scanned the ground as they flew. "I still think bringing Kyouko here was a reckless idea. I would think you of all people-"

"Mom, please... I wanted to be here. I want to help you. You two have faced worse enemies, right?"

"... Yeah."

"Did you never worry about each other?"

"We always worry," Moon admitted. Saturn nodded at that.

"Then you should understand... Not counting those Kh'Sun bugs, I have never fought any real threat. This Soul Harvester thing sounds like things I was terrified of after _reading about them._ You expect me to not worry when you're facing this monster?"

"..." Saturn sighed. "Okay, I do understand that. I know you're not a little girl anymore. Was Tsuki okay with-" Saturn noticed her daughter blush. "Something wrong?"

"She didn't like me coming here, either, but she... Gave me a 'good luck kiss.'"

Moon shrugged. "I don't think that's weird."

Younger Saturn sighed. "It was our first. She made me promise there would be a second."

Saturn smiled. "Then we'll have to make sure you can keep that promise."

Her daughter blinked at that. "I though you would-"

"Be upset about a kiss? We would be quite the hypocrites if we were."

Younger Saturn was quite confused. "Huh?"

"First time I kissed Hotaru was right after the 'Pharaoh Ninety' war."

Her daughter had read enough about that era to know what they meant. "You weren't even thirteen?"

"Yeah. I was a bit of a spoiled brat."

"'Was'?" Saturn mused.

"Hotaru, don't make me moonbeam you."

Younger Saturn looked down, noticing something. "So, the Soul Harvester is hiding from us. It may not think magic cloaking is enough. Maybe it's hiding in a crowded place, in plain sight..."

Moon looked down. "Are you sensing something?"

"I'm not sure, but something seems odd about that place. We should play their game, though."

Moon nodded. "I know what you mean. And being in the right place at the wrong time is a skill Senshi seem to have. Let's check it out."

"Should we call Yuki and Aiko?"

"No, they're patrolling the northern part of the city, and there may not be anything here."

* * *

Luna had probably seen all of Usagi's moods, so she knew this was far from a good one. "Usagi, I can tell you weren't okay with Kyouko going to-"

Serenity sighed. "Of course I'm not okay. That monster..."

"Kyouko is, right now, the third-most powerful Senshi in our group, not counting the two Plutos... Or maybe _even counting them._"

"I am quite aware, and proud of her. But she has no experience in a real fight, no matter how good training she gets-"

"Keeping her sheltered won't change that."

"I hate to admit it, but you're right. I still don't like it."

"I guess your 'grandma' instincts are responsible for that."

Gin appeared near them. "Perhaps a distraction could help keep our minds away from that."

"'Our' minds?" Luna asked.

"I may be 'just' the crystal's soul, but I've cared about each Serenity I've been linked to. I've seen them be born, live, train, fall in an out of love... And I've also seen them die. Whenever that happens, I've always felt like a failure, even though I was never able to talk to them. It may just be that I'm programmed-"

Serenity smiled sadly. "You remind me of Aiko, back when... Gin, you may not have a 'real' body, you may be 'just' a soul, but- Maybe it's because you've been linked to us for so long, but you show a lot of... Let's call them human traits."

"So you say it's fine to feel like I've failed?"

"It's natural to feel that way, I guess. But... What did you mean by a distraction?"

"Coincidences happen around you all, and this might be another of those. Usagi, I know you can focus on wide areas. Focus on Kyoto, try to sense familiar energies."

Serenity knew how to do that, she didn't even need to close her eyes to 'see' that way. "I can sense... Hotaru, my daughter, my grand-daughter... I can also sense Aiko and Yuki." She blinked a few times. "I sense another Senshi. Faint, but... I know it's none of my friends."

Luna's eyes widened. "The Cycle has restarted."

"Cycle?"

Gin chuckled. "Luna, the Cycle only took a long break because of a technicality." She saw Serenity looking at them confusedly and decided to elaborate. "I thought Ami would find out about it, but she never had reasons to. At times, it can happen that a Senshi dies without leaving any offspring behind, leaving their 'post' empty. Or they choose to not have any offspring. Or are unable to. For some reason, when that happens, there is always a 'Sleeper' around to take that 'empty' spot. A Senshi that is not raised to be one, but 'awakens' at some point in their life."

"That is... That's what happened to us."

"Yes. The only reason there were no Senshi other than Pluto in this planet between your other lives and your current lives, is because of your mother... Nanna's mother. She wished for you to revive in her future, and the 'trigger' for your awakening was the Dark Kingdom of Arcadia's return."

"I see. So her wish interrupted this 'Cycle.'"

"I could see her thoughts, and I can see yours, so let me clear this out: She didn't know her wish would break the cycle. Heck, she didn't think it would take more than a couple centuries for Beryl to show up."

"... Which explains why our memories were a mess."

Gin nodded at Luna. "In any case, yes, the cycle is still going, and yes, we are sensing a new Senshi in Kyoto."

"But what about that era with no Senshi? Back when Gala and Chaos..."

"The cycle doesn't just randomly chooses someone to fill in the gaps, and in times of relative peace, it... I guess the best way to explain it is that it goes into a sort of stand-by mode."

"Strange, but what isn't when magic is involved?"

Gin nodded at Luna. "In any case, will you tell your daughter about-"

"I'll go there myself."

Luna frowned. "Why not tell-"

Serenity sighed. "Because I can... I can use one aspect of Pluto's powers, and what I see, it's not good."

Gin frowned. "I can't see what you see that way, but if it's that bad-"

Luna understood what they meant. "You can't wait. Go save the world, Sailor Moon."

"The world? I'm just going to go save one girl. Two, if I can. I hope I can. Neither of them deserves to die."

* * *

Run. She had to run. Run away from those... What the hell were they? Saturn's aura alone was intimidating from a distance, but the other two? If magic had weight, their auras could crush her easily. Alma was no coward, but she knew she had no chance to win. She could only hide.

There, that mall would do. Enough auras to mask her own. Hopefully. Yes, she just needed to lay low until they gave up.

But why did they care? Her 'victims' were all scum. Scum that cheated on their spouses, scum that 'legally stole' from those who barely had any money, scumbag policemen who let murderers and worse free for a fee.

She killed monsters, just like the Senshi. Monsters that were human, but monsters nonetheless.

* * *

Mai sighed. Another boring weekend. She had decided to check the mall's theater, to see if there was anything worth watching, but no luck there.

She was walking around when she saw them. Two women and a girl around her age. From their body language, she could tell they were a family, but... They weren't even disguising themselves. Civilian clothes or not, she knew the two women. Hotaru Tomoe and Usagi "Chibiusa" Tsukino. Admittedly, they were not usually seen in civilian clothing outside their city, and not many would know, or even assume they looked the same they did in pictures taken decades ago. So they were hiding in plain sight?

* * *

Alma could sense it. They were close. Too damn close. They could even be inside the building. No, she had to run, to hide. She knew the news had labeled her as a monster, and the Senshi killed monsters. She could not let them find her. If they did... She could do something she would regret.

* * *

Mai had observed the trio for a while. Either she was good at stealth, or they were ignoring her. Yep, they were ignoring her. She had overheard the girl's name, Kyouko. Were the rumors right? Did these two had a daughter, not adoptive, but 'natural' daughter? She had seen many discard that rumor, but with magic... The Senshi could fly, tank nukes, summon weapons out of thin air... Two female Senshi having a biological daughter was somehow not that weird. It was obvious they knew she was following her. Should she-

"If you were trying to be stealthy, you suck at it."

Mai saw Kyouko standing right next to her. She was sure she had been meters away a second earlier. "I uh... Sorry, I was just-"

"A fan?"

Mai sighed. "Yeah."

"That's nice, but we're trying to find the Soul Harvester. You should run, unless you are the Harvester, in which case, you should run _faster_."

The friendliness in the girl's voice made her threat all the more frightening. But Mai noticed the way she had said it. That last bit was not meant just for her, but the whole mall.

She sensed movement out of the corner of her eye, and froze. She saw Kyouko turn around and summon something (a staff?) and use it to deflect something that had been thrown at her. A magic blast? "Whoa..."

Usagi frowned as she looked at the white-haired girl who had attacked her daughter. That was the Harvester? She looked younger than Kyouko! "Are you the Soul Harvester?"

Alma glared at her, but in her mind, she was trying to not faint at the magic she was sensing. "Yes. You got me. Do your worst."

"Our worst?" Hotaru frowned. "We are no murderers. If you don't attack us again, we won't hurt you."

Usagi saw the people around the mall was starting to back away. The bravest ones were using their phones to record it, but even those could try to flee at any second. And yet... No, this 'Soul Harvester' wasn't noticing the crowd. She didn't care about bystanders, wasn't trying to keep them there as hostages. "Can we talk? We want to know why you killed all those-"

"Why?" Alma sighed. "Because they're scum. Criminals who sold drugs at my school, and other schools. Assholes who use lawful means to leave people like my dad without a cent. People who think they can get away with whatever they want because of their power. And people like my mom, who don't give a damn about their families and cheat on their spouses. I hate them all. They all need to die."

Hotaru shrugged. "While I can't approve of your methods, I can agree that not all humans are... Good."

"What. Don't you Senshi hunt monsters? I am a monster, everyone in this city thinks that."

Usagi frowned. Provoking a cornered foe could be foolish, but she needed to know she had heard right. "You... Want us to kill you?"

"I... Not really. But what is the alternative? They send me to an asylum, where they either zap me for years and brainwash me into thinking I am in the wrong, or I go to jail while all those assholes roam free. I hate both of those endings. I'd rather die a villain."

Kyouko walked to Alma, who was too shocked to make any movement. The young Senshi glared at her for a moment before slapping her. "You idiot! You want to die? What about those who care-"

Alma glared back at her. "Mom is happy sleeping with a guy not much older than me, and dad... He couldn't get over the grief. He just gave up. That was the reason I started hunting."

Kyouko flinched. "Sorry, I didn't know... Still, don't say dying is your only-"

"Screw you! What do you know, princess? You live in your perfect city with your perfect mommies. Don't try to tell me how I should feel."

Usagi walked to her. "We won't kill you. You still haven't given us a reason to see you as a monster. You're just too blinded by hatred to-"

Alma glared at her. "Oh, so that's what's stopping you?" She grabbed Kyouko's arm. "Let me give you a reason."

"Don't you dare-"

"No!"

Hotaru saw a lightning blast shoot by, hitting Alma straight in the chest, and knocking her away. She turned to see the girl who had been talking to Kyouko, a certain symbol shining in her forehead for a second. "A Senshi?"

Mai looked at her own hand. She knew she had shot lighting off them, but how? "I am a... Senshi?"

Alma stood up, snarling and running straight to Mai. However, someone appeared right in her path, and the magic aura this woman had was beyond frightening, and her stare was downright scary. "What- Who are you?"

Serenity looked at her, her face unreadable. "My name is Usagi Tsukino. I would say 'nice to meet you,' Alma, but you've threatened my grand-daughter and tried to attack a potential Senshi. You're not getting the death you want, but I cannot let you kill innocents, either."

If Alma had been desperate enough, she would have tried to attack this woman, but two things stopped her. One, she knew who this was. Queen Serenity, the strongest magician on Earth. Trying to kill her would have earned her a _foolish_ death. And two... She could not use her skills. "What did you do to me?"

"It's easy to explain. I can turn powers off. You are not a mage right now, but a normal human girl. And unless I decide you deserve to have magic again, you'll stay that way."

"Great. Just another great. Just kill me already."

"I can't do that. And right now, you can't force us to. I heard enough to know your life has been hellish up to now, so... I promise I won't let them put you in jail, or anywhere else."

"How can you be sure they'll listen-"

"I am Sailor Moon. The planet owes me a lot, even though I'll never collect. But I can and will use that title to fix things, if I must."

"Why do that for a monst-"

"You are not a monster. You wanted to tell life to go screw itself, and... I can't really blame you for that. But I can't let you continue killing. Sooner or later, you will kill someone who doesn't deserve it, or worse, you may start enjoying it."

Alma cringed at that, and looked at Kyouko. "Uh, sorry for-"

"That was my bad, really. I was stupid enough to stand right next to a potential threat. I've trained enough to know that's a dumb move. Way to go, me..."

Mai walked to them. "Sorry to interrupt whatever this is, but..." Lightning balls appeared floating over her hands. "Explain?"

Serenity smiled. "You're Sailor Jupiter. Younger Jupiter."

"How?"

"Mako, that is, Elder Jupiter, has no children of her own. She and her husband chose not to, at least for the time being. But... Let's say there's laws to magic, and said laws don't like it when a generation of Senshi has too many empty spots. So... You were chosen."

"Uh... Cool?" Mai looked at Alma. "I know things were crazy minutes ago, but you don't sound like a bad person to me. Screw the news, you're no monster."

"... Thanks."

"Sorry for hitting you."

Alma sighed. "Sorry for trying to- Ugh, I can't believe I almost..."

Serenity smiled. "Well, I already notified Phase and Warwitch, so let's move to a less public location."

The few civilians who had been brave (or foolish) enough to stay that long saw the women all vanish. Zero property damage, no casualties... It was hard to tell a battle had been fought there, but the threat of the Soul Harvester was over, and the city was safe. Or at least safer than hours earlier.

* * *

**A/N:** To those surprised by the new Senshi: I never said Senshi powers were a hundred percent hereditary before. Heck, most of the "Elders" come from families with no known magic users prior to the Elder Senshi themselves.

The title? A nod to a few people who have told me I have "too many" Senshi in my story. I'm a fan of Touhou and Dynasty/Samurai Warriors. The concept of more characters making a plot "less fun" or "worse" is simply alien to me.


	10. The calm after the storm

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 10: The calm after the storm.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: March 26, 2019_

* * *

Considering everything that had happened to her in the last hour, Alma was not ashamed of being scared. Serenity had taken her - and the others - to a large room, somewhere. "Where are we?"

Serenity smiled. "In Crystal Tokyo. Inside the palace."

"Why bring me here?"

"I told you I wouldn't let them do anything to you."

"Why?"

"Do you enjoy killing?" Usagi asked.

"No. I just wanted to get back at assholes like those who... Do any of you even know how this feels?"

"We are not a bunch of spoiled, perfect beings," Hotaru said. "Me? I lost my mother when I was too young to remember, was given powers I was not really okay with for years. And some of my friends... Well, you can ask around later, it's their choice to tell their stories. However, you had the power to kill, to erase souls. That's quite a power for a young girl to have."

"Had?"

Serenity sighed. "I may give you your magic back, but I won't give you access to that skill. It has few 'good' uses and an untrained mage having it..."

"I think I understand. You're right, I was dangerous. I could have killed your-"

"Kill Kyouko? You weren't going to. That's why I didn't act until you attacked Mai. That's when you went from scared to suicidal, and I couldn't let the others kill you. Both for them, and for you."

Kyouko walked to Alma. "Besides, friendly warning? You're not the only one who can kill just by touching someone. I could have done it, but I am no murderer."

Alma gasped. "You could have..."

"I've been a Senshi since I was eight, and trained for battle since day one. My 'two mommies,' as you called them, have kicked me around and taught me enough self-control to let me do what I did. I lied about it being a 'dumb move,' sorry. I was giving you a supposed hostage. A chance to gloat. I wanted to see if you were really so desperate as to break your own pattern, and you weren't. The one thing that wasn't in my plan was Younger Jupiter."

Mai sighed. "Speaking of which, can I go back home?"

Serenity turned to her. "You have questions, and we will answer them, but I want to deal with Alma first."

"... Okay." Mai could understand that. This Alma girl had... No, Mai herself couldn't imagine what she went through. She now realized how lucky she was for the boring life she had. "Wait, how do you know her name? Or mine, even?"

"Magic. I am the one Senshi who can use the powers of all others, in a limited way. I can, thanks to Pluto's power, see many possible futures, which is why I was ready to jump in at the right time. The fact Pluto isn't here shaking her head at me is proof that I didn't mess up. I can also see the past, and know you two are completely different. Alma's life... Much despite the rumors, I am no goddess, I can't fix everything. But seeing how life can turn an innocent girl into an assassin... That makes me feel like a failure."

"You stopped me from killing her," Alma said, turning to look at Mai. "I can't imagine what I would have done after that."

Serenity winced. "I've seen versions of that. You most likely would have been broken by that, and either try and succeed to, as you called it, 'die a villain,' or you would have used your own power on yourself before we could stop you."

Alma laughed humorlessly at that. "Using my power on myself. I never thought about it. That would have been a simple solution for my problem."

"Please, don't say that," Serenity said. "You have a future now."

"Do I?"

"You spoke of this 'perfect' city with spite before, but would you be willing to give living here a try?"

"I- Wow, that's a tough choice. Live in a city that's always sounded too perfect to be true, or go back to a city where I'm seen as a monster, and my only 'friends' are a bunch of criminals I may have considered killing at some point?"

"Sarcasm doesn't suit you," Mai commented.

"Says you." Alma sighed. "I think whatever your conditions may be, they won't be worse than what I was doing before. Thank you for letting a nobody like me be part of your city."

Usagi decided to drop a 'bomb' right then. "A nobody? Alma, you have the potential to become one of the strongest mages on Earth, as far as non-Senshi mages go. You'll need training, but as long as you don't go on killing sprees, we can help with that."

"That's... Wow."

"Serenity turned to Mai. "You are worried we'll make you stay here."

"I... Yeah." So Serenity's rumored 'people reading' skills weren't just rumors.

"You'll need to train, but with magic, it takes a split second to go from here to Kyoto. However, your parents need to know about your powers."

Mako appeared right then. "So, what's the emergency?"

"Sorry for calling you this late at night, but... Mai, meet Makoto Kino. Sailor Jupiter, or should I say Elder Jupiter."

"Elder-" Mako said, then saw Mai summon a ball of lightning. "Oh."

Serenity smiled. "Mako, meet Mai Raikou, Younger Sailor Jupiter."

Mako nodded at her. "Nice too meet you."

"Likewise," Mai said. In her mind, however, she was going full fangirl about it. Being a Senshi, meeting so many Senshi, if this was a dream, she hoped her mom would let her sleep for a while longer.

"So, long story short, there is apparently a 'Cycle' that makes it so there is always enough Senshi in each generation."

Mako looked at Mai, then at Serenity. "Oh, I see. So it doesn't just wait for us to have kids."

"Yes," Serenity said. "Now, Mako, you may already be guessing why I called you here, but I'll tell you anyways. Since it's _technically_ your fault this young lady is a Senshi, I want you to be the one to tell her parents about it."

"Wow, thanks for the honor, my Queen."

Serenity almost laughed at that. Mako, of all people, was the one who had the most trouble with calling her a Queen. Not out of disrespect, but because she still saw Serenity as Usagi, gown or no gown.

Mai sighed. "Sorry, Jupiter..."

"It's okay," Mako said, "and call me Mako."

"Right."

"So, where do you live?"

"Kyoto. I'll give you directions once we get there."

"Good. Why aren't you transformed?"

"Uh, I don't know how."

Mako looked at the others. "Seriously?"

"We were too busy to remember," Usagi said. "By the way, Mako, the girl now staring at you in fear? She's Alma, formerly known as 'Soul Harvester.'"

Mako looked at the girl. Thin, white-haired, and not much older than Kyouko. She could not sense magic in her, and knew her friends enough to know they weren't there to punish her. "So, I bet she had a tough life. I'll hear about it later. Gotta go tell a parent their kid's a Senshi, oh joy."

Alma saw Mako and Mai leave, and smiled. "She looked like she didn't want to do it."

"Mako? Well, most of our parents weren't too weirded out by the idea of us being Senshi," Usagi admitted, "but there were a few cases where it got awkward. Chie... Sailor Lilith's parents basically treated her powers as 'a phase she was going through' for years."

"Oh... I wonder what my dad would think..."

Usagi wasn't one to sugar-coat her thoughts. "About your powers? He might have freaked out. About your 'hunt'? I'm sure I don't need to guess. He would have been disappointed."

"Thanks, that makes me feel better."

"Honestly, wasn't trying to. Our past, our mistakes, our victories... It makes us who we are now. I learnt this a long time ago, it's better to think about the 'what next' than the 'what if.'

Alma let out a long sigh. "I guess you are not... I gotta be honest too, I can feel magic and you scared me."

"We guessed as much. It's why we were letting so much of our power through."

"Letting..."

"We know you can cloak your own power. So can we, and our version is much better at doing it," Usagi said.

"You mean that wasn't your full magic aura?"

Serenity sighed. "Kyouko, show her."

Kyouko gave Alma an apologetic smile. "Sorry."

Alma took a step back as she sensed the girl's power rise. That much power? But she was the same age as her, how...?

Kyouko let her power drop. "While Senshi powers can come from out of nowhere, like with Mai, in the case two Senshi of different elements have a child, both powers can transfer. In my case, it's because of my parents that I have three powers overlapping. That's why I'm that strong. Mom's stronger, and grandma is way too powerful for me to beat her in a mock battle."

Alma looked at her, then at Usagi and Hotaru. "So the rumors were true. These two..."

"I am their daughter."

Alma blinked at that. "Magic, I bet?"

"Yeah."

"Question, where am I going to live-"

Serenity nodded. "We'll decide that tomorrow. Tonight, you'll sleep in a guest room."

"You mean here. In the palace."

"Yes."

Alma smiled, much despite herself. "If this is a dream, I don't want to wake up."

"It's no dream, Alma," Serenity said.

"Huh, weird," the girl said. "You knew Mai's full name, but what about mine?"

"Your last name reminds you of your father, who you regret losing, and your mother, who you still hate. I won't judge, I know parents can be evil, our first 'final boss' was a woman who saw all her children as tools, and used them to fight us. People can change, too, Rei's father was able to. But I respect your choice, if you want us to know you just as Alma, that's fine."

"Thanks."

* * *

Mako looked at Mai. The girl was skinny, blonde, and short. This 'Cycle' really messed up there. Or perhaps she shouldn't have expected a lookalike, since this wasn't her child.

"Something wrong?"

"It's nothing. Transform back to normal."

Mai looked at the house in front of them. "Why?"

"Because the 'disguise' spell is one that never goes away. Your parents expect Mai to walk through that door, not Sailor Jupiter."

"Uh, right." After transforming back to normal, Mai walked in, followed by Mako. "Mom, dad? I'm back."

Her parents were there, their faces a mixture of worry and relief. "Mai! Where were you this late at night?"

Mako smiled at them. "I apologize on behalf of my allies. It's technically our fault she's still up and about."

The man looked at her. He knew enough about the Senshi to realize who this was. "Sailor Jupiter?"

Mako nodded as she mentally triggered her transformation. "Yes. How much do you know about Senshi?"

The woman smiled. "It's not just Mai that's a fan of your group, Miss Kino."

"Call me Mako."

"Okay. My name's Atsuko."

"Shun," the man said. "It's weird, you are probably older than me, but-"

"I look young. It's a consequence of my magic. We Senshi have very long lifespans."

Atsuko saw Jupiter look at her daughter as she said that. Did that mean - no, that wasn't possible. "So, what happened? Why are you here?"

"Well-"

Mai sighed. "Mako, no offense, but I'm tired. I want to go jump on my bed and sleep for a day. So let's just show them."

Shun saw his daughter transform and gasped. That was a Senshi suit. Matching Jupiter's suit. A part of his mind was shouting about it being impossible, but he ignored it. "You are... A Senshi?"

"I found out an hour ago. I went to the mall. The Harvester was there, being chased by some Senshi, and I kind of saved one of them by shooting lightning at her."

"Her?"

Younger Jupiter smiled. "The Harvester? Not a monster. A girl my age who had very bad luck, and no family left."

"Oh my..."

Elder Jupiter smiled. "My friends will make sure her luck changes."

"So Mai is a Senshi? Jupiter? Can there be two?"

"We already have a Younger Mars, Younger Venus, Younger Saturn... But in cases like mine, magic makes up for lack of a 'Younger' by choosing someone suitable." At least that's what she was guessing, she would need to ask the older Usagi about it later.

"So you can't have-"

"Oh, no, I chose to wait, and my husband was fine with that. We could have kids if we wanted to. Probably will, in the future."

Atsuko chuckled. "Sorry, it's just that I may have figured our why you're here, and why you don't seem too happy to be the one doing this."

"Yeah, Usagi, that is, Queen Serenity, kind of told me it was my fault your daughter was Jupiter, and told me I had to come help Mai tell you she's a Senshi."

"Does Serenity order her friends around?"

Elder Jupiter smiled. "No. She asked me to do this. I could have said no, and she wouldn't have minded. But I know she's kind of right. I'm annoyed at the task, not the task giver."

"Well, thanks for telling us... Wait, does Mai need to go live there?"

"Not unless you all agree to it. She can keep going to school, and she can tell all her friends she's a Senshi. We'll train her to use her powers, but that will only be a couple hours a day, for a while, and coming and going takes a second. Heck, with enough practice she could learn to teleport."

"Yay, I can finally get to school in time!"

Jupiter saw the girl and her parents looking at her, expecting a reaction from her. "What? As long as she doesn't use her powers for evil things, it's okay. Being late for school and teleporting to make it in time? Been there, done that."

Shun sighed. "Mai, I don't think we have a problem with you being a Senshi. Go get some dinner from the fridge, and then go to sleep."

Mai turned back to normal, and gave her parents a hug. She then hugged Jupiter too. "Thanks for helping me."

"No problem, really."

As Mai left the room, Shun smiled. "You know, Jupiter..."

"Mako."

"... Right. Mako, to us your group always looked like... I dunno how to say it. You're human, I can see that now."

"Same here," Atsuko admitted. "But... The Harvester was a girl Mai's age?"

"I have seen her kind before. I wasn't there to hear her tell her story, but... I wouldn't be surprised if that girl had to deal with a lot of bad things, of bad people. Not a good life to live."

"From what we heard, people she targeted were not honest citizens. Can't always trust rumors, but-"

"In this case, they may be right. Some of my friends used to actively hunt scum like that, but they rarely, if ever, had to kill them. This girl was on a rampage, it's good we stopped her before she did something she would regret."

"So... Will you come pick her up soon?"

"I'm not- Moon and Saturn take care of training the Younger Senshi. They may ask me to give her some tips, since she's got the same element, but... Don't worry, she's in good hands. She may even get some actual muscle between her skin and bones."

Atsuko smiled. "Mai was never a fan of physical work."

"Oh, then she'll love training. I almost feel sorry for her."

"Uh..."

"Don't worry, I'll tell my friends about it so they can adjust her training. Anyhow, it was good to meet you, but I had things planned tonight, so... Goodbye."

"Bye." Atsuko sighed. "Our daughter, a Senshi."

Shun smiled. "Yeah... She'll be fine."

"I wasn't worried," his wife lied.

* * *

Alma woke up and looked around. No, it was no dream, she was still in the guest room. It was too big a room for one person, bit she guessed they were designed for more than one person. She looked to the side and was surprised to see her dress there. A white summer dress which was the last thing her father bought her, although it was clean. She remembered leaving it there. Had someone sneaked into her room... 'Her' room? That was a silly thought.

She was just done dressing up, when she felt something. She rose her hand and gasped. She could feel the energy flow into it as a ball of mana formed. "This is-"

"Raw mana, basic magic, with no elements attached. You didn't think we were giving you your full power back, did you?"

She saw Usagi - the younger one - standing near her. "Uh... Why give me back magic at all? I still-"

"You need to prove to us you can have magic and not use it for evil. How could you do that without having magic?"

"... Fair point."

"By the way, I'm not as good at 'reading people' as my mother, but I can tell something else bothering you."

"My dress. Who cleaned it?"

"Me. Magic is useful for things other than combat."

"Uh..."

Usagi saw the girl's cheeks turn a shade of red that reminded her of Mars' skirt. "Oh, yeah, I was not aware you slept completely naked. Sorry for not asking."

"I feel like hiding under a rock right now."

"Oh, you're actually shy about it? Good. You know, that's one thing you and Kyouko have in common. She also sleeps like that. But she doesn't care who sees her. You at least know it can be awkward."

"Uh... I could say it's because that dress is the only piece of clothing I own, but I actually like- I just never did it in a place I knew someone could walk in and see me."

"In any case, mom wanted to see you as soon as you woke up."

"Okay."

Usagi blinked. "... You're not going to complain about not getting breakfast?"

"I've lived in the streets for two years. Breakfast was whatever I could steal off any shop close to wherever I woke up. Most of the time, my conscience beat my stomach."

Usagi nodded. "I see... Well, mom is waiting for you, I know her enough to know there is breakfast. Mostly because she may have guessed, or seen, you haven't eaten properly in months, and also because she's quite the glutton."

Alma stared at her. "Queen Serenity of Crystal Tokyo. A glutton."

"We are as human as you. We're not perfect. I've got quirks too."

Alma smiled. True, anything was better than the life she had been leading for the last two years, or even- But she liked this. She could get used to not running, not hiding. Not becoming a 'monster' out of spite.

As they walked through a long corridor, Usagi looked at her. "Uh, sorry to ask, but how old are you?"

"I'm going to be twenty in two months," Alma said. She saw Usagi's shock and couldn't help but laugh. "A woman who should be fifty but looks like she's in her twenties, surprised by this? I've always been short, and I know my face is a bit on the 'childish' side."

Usagi shrugged. "Well, I thought you were fifteen, at most, but even if you're nineteen... I still think you are too young to have gone through all that."

"Yeah. I still went on a rampage. Sleeping it off made me realize death was the easy way out for those I killed. It may be also finally hitting me that the way I ended those lives, I..."

Usagi hugged the girl as she started sobbing. "It'll be fine, you're no murderer."

"How can you be sure?"

"Murderers don't regret killing, they enjoy it. First time I killed a monster? I was kind of a wreck for two days."

"Does killing evil things get easier?"

"Not really, we just get used to it."

Alma wiped the tears off her eyes. "Uh, sorry about... Let's go, I don't want to make Serenity wait."

"Don't be afraid of her."

"I'm not, not anymore. But she's the best thing that happened to me in a decade. I respect her."

Usagi smiled. "Heh. You'll be fine."

"... Thanks, I guess?"

Usagi stopped in front of a large door. "Okay, here you are. Good luck."

"Uh, you're not-"

"I've got things planned today, sorry. But as I said before, you'll be fine."

Alma closed her eyes for a moment. "Thanks." As she opened, she saw Usagi was gone. "Teleportation, huh. Looks neat." She sighed and opened the door. She couldn't forget all the things that made her who she was, but she could at least give the "what next" a try.

* * *

**A/N:** In the previous version of this story, by episode ten I was halfway through the Dark Moon arc. I guess I'm taking things 'a bit' slower this time. Don't worry, I'll be done with the boring age of Crystal Tokyo in a few dozen episodes. Yes, that was a joke. Or was it?

This episode's title? I regret nothing. If you missed it, go back to episode eight and see what its title is.


	11. A new life

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 11: A new life.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: March 28, 2019_

* * *

Alma looked out the window and smiled. One week had passed since her first encounter with the Senshi. One week full of surprises for her, most of them good. Since, by the laws of the city, she was an adult, they told her she could choose to live on her own. She had no money to her name, but the Queen had told her to take some time to adapt, to find a job. She could worry about the rent later.

Still, for the first time in years, it felt wrong to just take things for free. She wanted to find a job, both to start earning money, and to have something to do with her time.

She almost jumped when a figure appeared near her, inside her house. But then she saw who it was. Like mother, like daughter. "Hello, uh..."

"Just Kyouko will do. Besides you're older than me, so don't worry about being formal."

"Right. So, checking on the wild card?"

Kyouko cringed. "None of us sees you that way, and if you heard civilians calling you that, well... It's normal human stupidity."

"I guess... Anyhow, what's up?"

Kyouko was silent for a few seconds before replying. "I was told to bring you to our training today."

"Why?"

"Magic is not just a weapon, it's a part of us. I'm sure when grandma turned your magic off, you felt it, right?"

"I felt like I... Like a part of me was missing."

"Yeah, and if you don't use it for a while... It could mess with your mind."

"So I either shoot beams off my hands or go crazy. Nice."

"You could also train on passive magic, or 'utility' magic. Those also work on keeping a mage sane."

"Well, I guess checking out this 'training' of yours will keep me from being bored."

"That's good."

* * *

Younger Jupiter picked herself off the ground and looked at her 'mentor.' "Okay, I see what you mean. You didn't even attack once, and I'm the one who can barely move."

Younger Lilith nodded. "And I'm not that good at dodging. Moon is awesome, and from what I've heard, Serenity can beat most other Senshi by dodging until they're out of stamina."

"I believe that," Jupiter said, then saw Kyouko appear near them, along with... "Hi."

Alma smiled. "Hi."

Lilith walked to Kyouko. "You're late."

"Sorry, how can I ever make up for being late?"

"You'll figure something out."

Alma was about to say something, when she saw Kyouko kiss Lilith. And that was no peck, either. Were her cheek deep red again? Yep, they were.

Jupiter walked to her. "Oh, you didn't know they-"

Alma sighed. "First time I saw two women kiss, and... They're young."

Kyouko heard that and sighed. "I'm almost sixteen."

"I meant no offense, it was just a bit of a shock."

Tsuki smiled. "She's a bit spoiled, but... I used to not talk to strangers, or even to my parents. I kept my feelings to myself. This cute girl here, even before we became a couple, she was always trying to make me open up to her."

Kyouko saw Alma stare at her and sighed. "What now?"

"Uh, I was just... I can sense she has two kinds of mana."

Lilith nodded as her suit turned black. "I am also Younger Nemesis. A dual Senshi."

"So if you decide to have off-springs..."

Kyouko looked at Tsuki, who was now blushing and looking at her own feet. "I did wonder about that, yes, but I'm in no hurry to see if it works that way."

Jupiter was quite lost. "What are you talking about?"

"Senshi powers can be transferred to any off-springs we have," Kyouko explained. "Mom is a dual Senshi because grandpa is Dragon Earth. Tsuki here is the daughter of Dragon Lilith and Sailor Nemesis."

"... Okay, I know what you mean, I think. You have three powers because of Hotaru, and... "

Alma smiled as Jupiter stared at the two other Senshi in awe. "She gets it."

Kyouko shrugged. "As far as I know, I am the first 'triple' Senshi ever, even though Senshi have been a thing for billions of years."

"Billions?" Both Alma and Jupiter shouted in unison.

"For reasons I can't speak of, at least until I speak to a few people, I know Senshi have been around for that long."

"See, I told you, leave it to these two, and they slack off."

Lilith turned to see Younger Mars and Venus were there. "The new girls had questions. We were answering. Besides; I already dodged Mai to a pulp, and... Well, I'm not sure what this one-"

"Alma," Kyouko corrected. "She has potential, but I think we'll have to start with the basics."

"Basics?"

Mars looked at Alma. "I can see it. You may be older than Kyouko, but as far as magic goes, you're a toddler."

"I may not be proud of it, but I had a lot of power back when-"

"And you still do. But power alone is worth little. Kyouko has more power than me, and yet she only wins if she uses her head more than her power."

"Well, yeah. I never trained, my power was impossible to block and-" Alma stopped and looked at Kyouko. "And yet you blocked the first attack I threw. How?"

Kyouko summoned her staff. "Your attack was quite powerful, and if it had hit me, I would have died. But you were too obvious. I had sensed you, and my taunt was meant to drag you out. As for the staff... It's my one defensive Talisman, a part of my 'real' Talisman."

"Talismans are those artifacts linked to your souls, right?" Jupiter asked. She knew what they were, but could guess Alma didn't.

"Yes, and I have three, one for each element. The staff can stop some very powerful blasts."

"How could you be sure you would be able to block mine."

"Because it is strong enough to stop a full power death bolt from my mom. Which, before you ask, I know it can because I tested it."

Alma paled as she heard that. "Why would your mother-"

"Training."

"Speaking of training," Venus said, "we really should start before Usagi or Hotaru show up."

"Would they punish you if-"

Venus smiled at Alma. "No, but I respect them, and while they know we may slack off a bit while left alone,she also knows we've never taken days off when we were supposed to train. Anyhow, I'm curious to see if you can fight at all. Try hitting me."

Alma did as told, or at least tried. Venus moved out of the way as she tried to punch her, with a speed that made it hard to follow. "Amazing."

"Thanks. You at least know how to throw a punch, but you got a long way to go."

Alma frowned. "I don't want to learn how to fight. I'm done hurting people. I want to learn other things, like teleportation, or-"

"Planning on running away, huh?" Lilith joked. Kyouko's glare made her wince. "Uh, sorry, just a joke. A bad one."

Alma shook her head. "I like this city. I want to stay here. Which is why I want to learn things I can use outside battles. Teleportation, healing, maybe a way to turn my magic sensor off."

"We can teach you that too," Venus said, "I think it's a waste to just train that, but it's your choice."

Alma sighed. "I'm no Senshi, so I'll never become as powerful as you can be. And I... I'm scared of myself. What if I learn to fight, and then go back to hunting?"

"We would stop you. We would be a bit annoyed at you for letting your past rule you, but we would give you another chance."

Kyouko frowned. "You should learn how to fight, it makes it easier to control your power. Even if you're no fighter, something could make you go berserk again."

"Heh, don't I know that," Venus muttered.

"That's a good example. See, when they were younger, something made Hikaru very upset. She went berserk and left a nice crater outside the city. But she wasn't outside the city when she snapped. She had learnt enough self-control to let her move away from any civilians, to let her grief explode in a place she couldn't hurt anyone."

Venus smiled sadly. "I learnt a lot more control since then, but yeah. Learning to teleport, to heal, to breathe under water? Those could be useful and we've all learnt them. But you have the potential to hurt people. A lot." She looked at Mars and smiled, before turning to Alma again. "We don't train to hurt people, we train to know just how much power we can use; and how to use it to protect people."

Alma suddenly saw Mars shoot a fire blast at Venus... Who dodged it without even looking at it. "That..."

Mars smiled. "We have trained together for a long time. We both know each other well. I would not have shot at her if I didn't know she could dodge, or if I knew she didn't notice I was about to do it."

Venus sighed. "There's better ways to show our training, Hisa."

"Perhaps, but I love seeing you dodge like that."

Alma realized something. "Oh, you two are..."

"Married. At least as far as Crystal Tokyo's laws go," Venus said.

"Oh. Well, I... I guess I'll try training too."

Kyouko smiled. "Good."

Moon appeared right then, and looked at them all silently.

"Mom, nag off. We were trying to convince Alma to join us."

Moon smiled at her. "I know, I've been here for a while."

Alma stared at her. "I didn't sense you."

"I didn't want you to. Before you ask, no, I can't teach you how to do that. It's a Serenity-only thing."

"... Fair enough."

* * *

Hours later, Hotaru was getting dinner ready, but noticed something about her wife. "Something bothering you?"

Usagi sighed. "No use hiding it. Yes, it's Alma and Mai. They... I think the only way to say it, at risk of sounding cruel, is 'they shouldn't be here.'"

"Because you never heard about them. Maybe we didn't tell you because you weren't supposed to know."

"But Mai is a Senshi. She would still be around."

"Unless... Something happened to her."

"I don't think... You know, I may be just being silly. I wanted to 'change' our future, but the possibility of actually having changed it? It freaks me out."

"Maybe what Usagi did, which I can only see as 'rewinding reality' did mess with our universe. Maybe a number of things are already changing. But we'll have to wait for a thousand years to know for sure."

"Or we could go take a quick look." As soon as the pink-haired woman had finished saying that, a certain green-haired woman appeared near her. "... That was just a joke, Saki."

Younger Pluto gave her a neutral stare. "Good."

"You're not one for social visits."

"That I am not, but to avoid more 'jokes,' let me tell you what I can about your theory. Yes, there's some people in this city who shouldn't be here, either because they never met you, or because..." She sighed. "Serenity didn't tell you this, but she stopped Alma because she saw no future where she lived, and no future where she jumped in. Neither did we."

"That sounds like something she would do."

"However, the 'ripples' caused by changes in the timelines usually die out quickly. The future jas changed, but the main 'script' is still there. You will be born exactly one thousand years after your mother was, and you will be back in time as you remember, once to help us defeat the Nemesians, and then to train and... Well, to fall in love."

"And what about after that? The Hunters, will they-"

"I said I would tell you what I can. And I did."

"Great."

Younger Pluto smiled. "I'm not doing it because I like it. Heck, mom may shout at me for a while for telling you this much."

"Tell her I said hi."

"Will do," the woman said before vanishing.

Hotaru stared at the spot Pluto had been standing on for several seconds. "So..."

Usagi shrugged. "I guess I'll just wait. For all I know, any of my classmates back in the thirtieth century could have been my grand-grand-child."

"... That sounds both amazing and weird."

"That means it's par for the course."

* * *

Serenity was surprised. She had known Hana for a long time, and yet she had not expected this.

Nova had gone back to New York, and as she had thought, the murderer of her parents had been quickly found and dealt with. But any other criminal she hunted had been left mostly unharmed.

But now, Hana was back in Tokyo, and looking at her uneasily. "I did it. I got that bastard. A lot of people back there fear me now, and it's not just criminals."

"From the videos I saw, it's to be expected. You attacked that man in broad daylight, in a rather busy area, and thame white aura you had could be quite frightening to civilians. But I know better. You didn't harm anyone else, not even those you 'interrogated' while looking for him."

"I don't care if they hate me now. That city has not been my home for decades. But after what I did, do I deserve to come back here?"

Serenity shook her head, and her gown was replaced by 'civilian' clothes. "Hana, you _are_ family to me. Even if you weren't married to Shingo, I would still consider you a close friend. And you know I'm no saint, I've done my fair share of killing. The fact you only killed one person while you were there is all the proof I need that you are still in control. Welcome back."

"Thank you, Seren- No, thank you, Usagi."

* * *

Another week had passed. One week spent between training, job hunting, and slowly getting to know the Senshi and some of their friends. She had to admit she didn't regret meeting them.

"Huh, I didn't think there would be anyone here."

She turned to see Hisako standing near her. True, this place wasn't usually crowded, but that was because of its location. The tallest spire of the palace was by far the tallest structure in the city, and Alma had taken a liking to the view. "Hi. I like the view, really, and the feeling of being 'on top of the world.'"

Hisako nodded, but then saw her friend fall silent. "Something on your mind?"

"Just thinking it's the first time I see you without your wife."

"She's hunting for bugs. She loves that for some reason, so I leave it to her."

"Bugs? Oh right, games."

"I can guess you haven't played a lot."

"When I was a kid, my mother had a computer, and I played some things, but... Well, she took the money and the computer when she left."

"... Sorry for reminding you of her."

"Don't worry, she's just a footnote to me now."

Hisako looked down at the city. "I could say I understand, but my mother is... She's been always there for me. Specially after dad died."

"... But your father is alive, right?"

"Tell me, if your father was magically brought back, would it erase all you've been through?"

Alma cringed. "Sorry, I was just... I'm not used to people coming back."

"Even we aren't true immortals. We just won't die of old age, but as far as I know, there's only two really ancient Senshi still around. Sailor Galaxia and the first Sailor Sun."

"Galaxia? I hope that name doesn't mean-"

"Yes, she draws power from the whole galaxy. But Serenity defeated her, or at least a creature that was using her body and power for evil."

"Serenity sounds more and more like a goddess the more I hear about her past."

"I wasn't born yet, but mom told me Serenity unlocked a power beyond that of Galaxia. It was a temporary form, but it's known as Sailor Cosmos."

"Cosmos, as in, the whole universe?"

"There's an old saying, that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. I think aunt Usagi is the exception to that rule."

"No offense, but Senshi sound unfairly powerful."

"Well, Usagi started off weak. We all start off relatively weak. And yet, she killed her first 'final boss' when she was fourteen, and just about as powerful as you."

"You guys say I have potential, but could I really be that strong?"

"Here's a fun thing. Yukiko can beat me in a fight, unless I manage to keep up long enough for her mana reserves to become an issue. You could be as strong as her, eventually. I don't plan on staying at this level, though."

"Hey, Hisa!"

Alma looked down and saw Hikaru was looking up at them from ground level. Her voice wouldn't have carried over to them so clearly from that distance, but she could bet magic was involved in that. "Guess she's done with bug hunting."

Hisako nodded. "Oh, want to see something weird? Watch this."

Alma saw the woman jump right off the spire. The drop down to the ground was easily a couple hundred meters, and yet Hisako landed without even flinching. She had heard rumors of that, but seeing it happen was something else.

Hikaru shook her head. "Don't freak the newbie out, Hisa."

"Didn't know this could freak you out."

"It doesn't, but- Hey!"

The girl on top of the spire decided to also go back to the ground - using the stairs, of course. Some called the city boring, but she could see there was always something interesting going on. She was growing fond of Crystal Tokyo. Hopefully, this peace would last.

* * *

"So this is it. This is the planet I've been looking for. My sister's last known location. It's been many years now, but maybe I can find out what happened to her."

"We are ready to begin, my Queen."

"Good. Let us begin the banquet. I can see plenty of food down there."

* * *

**A/N:** Damn it, Alma, you just had to tempt fate...

Foreshadowing dialog between two characters who conveniently leave out each other's names? Well, they're looking for food, I'm sure they'll just eat lunch at Mako's restaurant and leave.


	12. Back to school

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 12: Back to school.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: May 9, 2019_

* * *

Usagi woke up and looked at the clock for several seconds before her mind finally made sense of the numbers. "Been a while. I'm late for school."

"That you are," Luna said. "Brings back memories."

"You're talking like it was decades ago." There was no need for her to hurry. Magic was a good thing to have, and even if she phased into her classroom, nobody would think it weird. However... "Where's Chibi?"

"I was downstairs when she woke up. Hotaru came to pick her up and they both left for school an hour ago."

"Hotaru came to pick her up?"

"She's not the same she used to be. Also, I think she wants to be there for her, to help her deal with what happened."

Usagi frowned at that. True, it had only been a few weeks since the Hunters were defeated. Her 'cousin' was not going back to the future. She looked at the clock in her night stand and sighed. "Okay, I should hurry up."

* * *

As she appeared next to her seat, she saw a few of her classmates stare at her in awe. "Sorry, woke up a bit late."

"You used to run to school, from what I heard. Magic made you lazy."

Usagi looked at Rei. "Maybe. I would have needed my top speed to make it in time, and... I've never run for that long using that much speed."

"It's hard at first, but if you practice you can run to Kyoto and back without crashing."

Ami shook her head at that. "Mina, that's due to your power. Your senses are heightened while you run, to make it easier for you to dodge and stop."

Minako blinked at that. "Eh? Is that also why everything goes into slow motion?"

"Yes. Your perception of the world changes."

Hotaru walked in right then. "Guys, there's trouble."

Usagi was sure it was the first time she saw Hotaru this upset. "Something wrong?"

"Let's discuss this... Elsewhere. I already asked Haruna about it, she says it's fine if we need to skip her class, and that she'll tell the other teachers about it."

Usagi nodded. "Okay, let's go."

* * *

As they all appeared inside the base, Usagi could see Chibiusa there, along with a girl around Chibi's age. The girl's looks... Well, that would explain why Hotaru was freaking out right now. Even if her hair had no 'buns' it was still a shade away from her daughter's, and her face was... Best way to know was to ask. "Who are you?"

The girl looked at her. "My name is Kyouko Tsukino."

Usagi knew most of her friends looking at her. "So you are... Chibiusa's younger-"

Kyouko shook her head. "No, I'm her daughter."

The blond girl was sure it was the first time her friends had shouted a collective "What?" She looked at the girl and smiled. "Well, nice to meet you, then."

Kyouko smiled back. "I thought you would find it hard to believe."

"If you're my granddaughter, you should know I would be able to tell if you lied. And we've been through a lot of weird things, too."

"Uh, right..."

Minako was quite shocked, but still decided to ask something that was probably bothering everyone else as well. "So wait, who is your father?"

Kyouko pointed at Chibiusa. "Technically, she is."

Two collective "What?" in one day. Usagi couldn't blame her friends. "How is that even- Oh, the Ginzuishou."

Kyouko nodded. "Mom, that is, Hotaru, really wanted to have kids, so they asked Serenity about it and she 'asked' the crystal to make it possible for them... And here I am."

Terry frowned. "Which leads us to the next question. Why are you here, in your past?"

"Training."

Chibiusa gave her a deadpan stare. "... No, seriously."

Kyouko chuckled. "Just wanted to see your faces if I said that. Truth is, a group of sort-of-poweful evil mages came back to the past to try and kill you."

"Wouldn't that break reality?"

"They either don't know that, or don't care."

"Why send only you?"

"I'm not alone, but the rest of my group... We decided it was best not to shock a lot of you at once."

Hotaru was looking at her. "So, I can see more than one power in you, which is to be expected, but..."

Aiko appeared right then. "Her powers may help conforming her story. I can sense the energies of Moon, Saturn and Earth Senshi in her."

Kyouko nodded. "I'm Younger Saturn, and the first triple Senshi ever born."

Terry stared at her. "And I can see you've trained a lot."

"Since I was eight," Kyouko said, not surprised he could tell. "Anyways, be careful. Those mages are almost as strong as you. We'll help you beat them."

Usagi smiled. Weird as it all was, she was still happy she got to meet Kyouko way ahead of schedule. "I wonder if a grand-granddaughter will show up next?"

Kyouko blushed at that. "I wouldn't know."

"Have someone you like?"

She nodded at Mako's question. "And I'm going to be her wife."

'Her,' Usagi noticed, but decided to say nothing about it.

* * *

Gin was a bit surprised. True, it wasn't the first time this happened, but whoever it was this time around, was much stronger than the one the Senshi fought so many decades ago. She seemed to be the only one aware of what was going on, and she could make Usagi realize what was going on easily, but she was curious. Whose dream was this?

No, it was obvious. The reason they were all sharing this 'reality' was that they were all dreaming it together. This new foe was a crafty one, indeed.

As fun as watching them interact here was, she knew the reason they were put to sleep. She had to get Usagi to- Well, either one of the three Serenities would do.

* * *

Younger Saturn had been waiting for hours, but it was finally time to fight. There, that was one of them. Going after Usagi, so predictable. Kill the leader first to demoralize them all. Too bad their plan had many flaws.

She appeared in front of her foe, glaring at him. "Hello there. Your secret agenda wasn't so secret after all."

The man glared back at her. "Damn, one of the Tokyo brats?"

'Brat'? Oh she was going to make him eat those words. "Leave now and return to our era, and your punishment won't be so bad."

"Shut up!" The man shot a large ice spike at his foe, but gasped as the girl simply used a staff - which she had summoned out of thin air - to block it. "How the hell-"

"Brats, you called us? We are Senshi. We've all trained for years to fight scum like you. And I'm the daughter of two of the strongest Senshi alive, so you better run home if you don't want a beating!"

Usagi was just watching them. True, normally she would try to help, but this girl... The man could, apparently, sense magic, as he was stepping back as Kyouko's power rose. Usagi was a bit proud to know this girl was her grand-daughter.

The man kept backing away in fear, but suddenly felt his back press against something, or rather, someone. A someone who had a lot of magic as well. He turned to the silver-haired woman and gasped. Those eyes... "What are you?"

Gin shrugged as a beam of raw magic cut the man in half, before expanding and atomizing him in a split second. "I don't need to talk to an imaginary being."

Kyouko gasped. "Gin? What are you doing-" No, several things were wrong here. Gin wouldn't risk revealing herself to her grandmother before she was meant to... And also, Gin simply couldn't fight in reality. "Ah, damn it. This is just a dream, isn't it?"

Usagi blinked at that. Yes, this wasn't real, she remembered it now. She was the queen of Crystal Tokyo, not a teenage girl. She knew what was going on, but... She had killed Vadianne. Was someone else using powers like hers?

Gin sighed. "It was fun to watch you guys as teenagers again for a while... And to be able to fight. But this dream is just meant to keep you from fighting the real foe. Wake up."

* * *

Minutes later, and back in the real world, the Senshi were having a meeting. "So we were all there."

Setsuna nodded. "This enemy caught us too. We were guarding the time gate in your dream, unaware of being in the wrong era until Gin showed up."

Aiko was in a bad mood. "Whatever their magic is, I still don't know if anything other than the Ginzuishou can wake someone up."

Younger Pluto nodded. "Our area was immune last time, but now..."

"I just hate that me being me means I had to look at Yukiko sleeping for three days without being able to do a thing about it..."

Serenity smiled sadly. "We'll get everyone back."

Aiko nodded and looked up. "Just like that time, there's a castle in orbit, and a powerful foe in it. But I also sense several creatures coming our way. They know we woke up."

"Creatures?"

"Remember that fake Sailor Moon you fought back then? It's the same, but upgraded to your current level."

Serenity was about to say something, but stopped. She was no longer the same she used to be back then. In the past, she would have told everyone to defend the civilians, and gone to fight the real foe alone, but she wasn't so naive anymore. "Usagi, Kyouko, come with me. The rest of you, take care of those fakes."

Tsuki frowned. She wanted to be by Kyouko's side, but she couldn't possibly say that out loud.

Serenity looked at her. "Tsuki, I know how you feel. You are powerful, but-"

"Sorry, I just want to help her..."

Kyouko hugged her. "We need as many of us down here as we can have. These may be fakes, but if they have Serenity's power-"

"Stop," Tsuki said. "I get it. You need me down here. I'll follow my orders."

Serenity looked at her. "Only once I did order someone, Tsuki. You are powerful, but this enemy may be stronger than me. If you understand that, and still want to come along, I won't forbid it."

Tsuki sighed and gave Kyouko a hug before smiling at Serenity. "It's fine. I will stay and fight those creatures. And it's not like she needs me to protect her."

Usagi smiled. "In a way, it's good Mai is still asleep with the rest of the planet. Imagine the mess it could be to tell her she has to sit out of this one."

* * *

As they appeared inside the floating castle, Serenity could see a scene that she could also remember. The woman standing there, glaring at her seemed younger than Vadianne. Some would find it weird that Serenity could remember the woman's name, but it was actually hard for her to forget names, she remembered every enemy that had ever bothered telling her its name. "You're not Vadianne. Good, I thought it was yet another one we had not killed right."

The woman's glare turned furious. "Killed... You killed her?"

"She tried to use our planet to feed, just like you, but was too overconfident." Serenity realized that might not run in the family - there was no mirror, no dark sphere to destroy. And as usual, her skill at 'reading' people was telling her a lot. This woman wasn't going to be redeemed. She was a parasite, just like her sister had once been, only living for the sake of living. "Let's skip the talking," she said and shot a beam at her foe.

Moon almost flinched. Serenity had not grown weaker from lack of fighting. If the fakes had that much power, she hoped her friends would be okay fighting them. Still, the blast hit harmlessly, and the woman let out a dry, humorless chuckle.

But someone else laughed. Younger Saturn looked at Serenity, who was laughing loudly. "Grandma?"

Serenity nodded at her. "I'm fine. More than fine. I had forgotten how this feels, facing an enemy that is, in some ways, stronger than me. One I can't just kill in one shot."

"Of course you can't!" the woman snarled. "I am Shalim, the immortal dream queen!"

"Give yourself whatever title you wish, monster. Your sister did the same, and she's been a fading memory to us for decades."

* * *

Mars looked at the fake Serenity and frowned. "Well, they got her looks and her power mostly right, but that cold, lifeless stare? That's all wrong."

"Return to the dream."

Dragon Mars glared at the creature. "We won't. Just leave and we won't have to destroy you."

"You are weak. My defeat is highly unlikely. But if you won't dream, then you must die."

Mars shot a fire blast at the woman, putting more energy than she would normally. It made her flinch and stagger back, but Mars knew this would not be an easy battle. And still, she was more worried about her daughter and the other Younger Senshi.

No, they would be fine. This Serenity was just a copy, a flawed one. It could not defeat the real Senshi.

"If you were really Serenity, I would agree. I haven't beaten her in a fight as she is now, but you... You're missing a very important thing."

"Senshi crystals cannot be copied."

"No, not that. You don't have her soul. You're a construct that just emulates her power, but my friend would never help someone like your boss."

"Lady Shalim will defeat her. I am just making it easier for her to do it."

Mars looked at her husband. "I think we may have to use _that move_ against her."

Dragon Mars knew exactly what she meant. "Yes. We need to finish this quick so we can help anyone who needs our help."

"I'm sure none of our friends will need help, but just in case..."

The fake Serenity took a step back as Mars' body was surrounded by flames. "That suicidal move?"

Mars smiled as her eyes opened. "I've gotten much better at controlling how much power I use."

The woman saw the Dragon's sword light up with white flames. "What is-"

"Besides, I'm just going to boost the real attack."

The fake had barely any time to make sense of what Mars had said before a wave of white flame shot from the Dragon's sword, washing over Mars' body, and becoming even brighter before tearing right through her.

Mars smiled coldly as the attack ended. There was nothing left of their foe. "Play with fire..."

Dragon Mars fell to one knee. "Tiring..."

Mars nodded. "Very." She then looked southwards as the sky lit up with flames. "Hisa is..."

The Dragon flinched. "Damn, we have to go help them."

Mars shook her head. "They're not kids anymore. I hate to think of what could cause that, but Hisako has more control than I do of that skill, and I feel no shame for that. Besides, can you sense her power?"

Dragon Mars smiled. "Yes. Still one step ahead of the others..."

* * *

The woman looked at her foes and smiled coldly. "Your parents must be foolish, sending their kids to fight me."

Younger Lilith glared at her and staggered up. This was pathetic. The first two minutes of the "fight" had been a real wake-up call for her, and probably the others. Despite not being the exact same power-wise, this 'copy' was far too powerful for any of them, or even all of them combined. "Damn it... And I was hoping to help Kyouko? I would just be in the way."

"Yes, give up, you are not strong enough to-"

"Oh shut the fuck up!" Younger Venus snapped, causing the evil woman to stop and stare at her. "Are you really giving up, Tsuki? Are you telling me all the training we went through was pointless? Well, sorry but that's-"

Lilith frowned as parts of her suit turned black. "Giving up? I was just thinking I'm glad I chose to fight one of these. She's not that strong."

Dragon Saturn's suit also changed, becoming half blue, half purple. "Let's show her our real power."

The four Youngers tried again, this time the fight seemed more even, but they were using up more energy to keep up with their foe. As a result, it wasn't long before they slowed down, and their foe knocked them all away.

"Return to the dream."

Venus staggered up. "We heard you the first time, bitch."

Mars saw Venus dash past their foe. She knew what this was, because she had been on the receiving end of it. Several Demon Hunter buff spells, mostly speed ones, stacked up. It made it almost impossible to keep up with her speed. While Hikaru couldn't be as fast as her mother due to Minako's skill, she could at least be second best.

Younger Venus smiled. She turned to the woman and saw her clutching her chest, a deep gash running through it. "Not invincible after all." She then gasped as she felt something punch through her stomach. A sword. Oh, right, Serenity did have one.

"Hikaru!"

Lilith saw Venus fall, then heard Mars' scream. This was something they knew could happen, but... "Damn it. Taka, bring her back."

Dragon Saturn nodded. He was already going to. Still... "Hisako, don't lose your cool."

Mars looked at him as her body was wrapped in flames. "I know." She looked at Venus' body and sighed. "Sorry, love, but I'll have to be one step ahead for this..."

The fake Serenity knew what she meant, and smiled coldly at her. "One single Holy Senshi will make no difference."

"I don't usually agree with Hikaru's colorful language, but in this case, she was right. Shut the fuck up. Mars Holy Power!"

Lilith had learnt to sense magic, just like the others, and was impressed at Hisako's power. "That fake is screwed."

Mars stared at their foe for a second, then smiled as the flames around her grew brighter. "You may have aunt Usagi's looks, but your shock tells me you don't know all she knows. See, first time I saw mom use this skill? It was the worst day of my life. Second time? I felt her dying. And yet, I still liked how it looked. There's drawbacks to it, and mom was not happy when I told her I wanted to learn to control it, but it was my choice to try to master this. I don't have mom's almost unbreakable shield, but I turned this skill into my way to compensate for it."

"You still are too weak-"

"I may not have Serenity's skill at reading people, but I don't need it to see you're terrified of me right now."

"You idiot, Lady Shalim will-"

Mars' smile turned into a glare as the fire around her all gathered in her hand, taking the shape of a spear. "Die."

A normal spear would have been no trouble for Serenity to dodge, even when thrown from that distance. But this was no normal spear. As Mars threw it, it shot through the air at a speed which would make Elder Venus have a hard time dodging. It punched right through the fake, then the fire burst out, becoming a column that consumed the woman before she could even blink.

Venus was already back with the living, and she rushed to catch Mars as she fell forwards. "Hisa..."

Mars smiled weakly as she leaned on her for support. "Powering up and using that skill at the same time may not have been the best idea."

"You look hot. Pun very intended."

Mars smiled and kissed her. "We should go help-"

Aiko appeared near them. "No need for that. The Nightmares are all dead."

"What about the boss?"

"Serenity said to leave it to them and rest."

"Rest?" Dragon Saturn muttered. "I'm not going back to sleep until that thing is dead."

Aiko smiled at that. "I guess... I am lucky I don't need to sleep."

Lilith blinked at that. "I never thought about this, but can you sleep?"

Aiko nodded. "I can emulate that. Turn myself off, so to speak, and program an hour to turn back on. I don't dream, though. Maybe that's why these bastards didn't target me."

Dragon Saturn sighed. "Emulate, turn off... I hate when you use computer terms to describe yourself "

"I don't think of myself as one."

"I know, but it reminds me that I thought like that about you for a while after mom told me of your origins."

"... Oh. You never-"

"I am not proud of that, sis. And you may have a freakish speed when it comes to math or other things programs do better than humans, but that doesn't make me see you as a 'thing.'"

Aiko smiled at him, then blinked. "Oh. Serenity says the boss is dead."

Venus saw Aiko's surprised face. "Did Serenity beat it?"

"Yes and no."

"Too tired for riddles, sis."

"Well, Go back to the palace, they'll tell you."

"You not coming?"

"Yuki must be awake now, I need to see her. I can hear the whole story later."

* * *

**A/N:** Fun thing: This whole episode's dream sequence was an arc I originally had thought about for the second book, but decided to not include there. Looking at it now, I'm glad I didn't make it a part of the plot back then. It works as an 'evil-induced dream' but would have been a mess to write around if real.

Also, I know this one took a while to get done. I was having a hard time writing this. I need to plan ahead a lot for the next few arcs, and I usually don't have the free time needed for that nowadays.


	13. Past, present and future

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 13: Past, present and future.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: August 12, 2019_

* * *

Shalim hadn't felt this way in centuries. Even in the rare cases where some beings could resist her eternal sleep, cases where the Nightmares weren't enough to deal with them were rare. She didn't usually need to fight. And to fight against someone who could keep up with her? That was almost unique. "I must admit you are quite the warrior, Serenity, and so is your daughter. But why bring that kid along?"

"Kid?"

Moon shook her head. "Kyouko, don't let her get to you. She can't beat us, so she wants us to lose our temper, get careless."

"... Right."

Serenity smiled. "In fact, I think she's got more chances of defeating you than me."

"What?" Both Younger Saturn and Moon shouted.

Gin 'appeared' in Saturn's mind. 'Don't you trust your grandmother?'

'I do, but if she can't beat this creep, then-'

'Raw power isn't everything.'

Moon sighed. "Mother, do you have a plan?"

"Yes. A very good one."

"Can you promise me Kyouko won't get hurt?"

"I could, but I hate lying."

Shalim frowned. "Who is underestimating who now?"

"Still you, creep," Saturn said with a smirk. Her foe glared at her, then rushed forwards. The young Senshi knew that Shalim had no chance at all when it came to combat. Easy to dodge, easy to hit... If not for her 'immortality,' she would already be dead.

But she had noticed something else, because she had read and asked about most enemies the Senshi fought before she was born. Unlike Vadianne, Shalim had not left the source of her 'immortality' in display. It was hidden. But thanks to her powers, it was easy to see where.

"Not bad, for a kid."

Saturn smiled humorlessly. "I have to admit you're quite crafty. Just like your sister, there's an artifact that grants you your power. But unlike her, you hid it in the perfect place. Inside you."

Shalim laughed. "So you know you can't defeat me. You cannot hurt me, and without hurting me, you cannot destroy the dream catcher."

Dream catcher? Not the silliest name for an ancient artifact, by far. "Hurt you? No, to defeat you I need to do the exact opposite." She didn't know if that would work, but- No, Serenity was trusting her with this. But was her power enough to-

'You know, you still rarely use me in battle.'

Younger Saturn sighed. 'I use my Moon powers a lot.'

'But not me. Not the Ginzuishou. You're a Serenity too. It's kind of sad that you always forget that, even at a time when you could really use the help.'

Saturn thought about it. Yes, of course, Gin was right. She had been thinking that her power wasn't enough, but she had only thought of her Senshi powers. "Oh wow, I'm such an idiot..."

Moon frowned. "Kyouko?"

"I'll tell you both later," she said then smiled as her Ginzuishou appeared. She looked at the evil woman and smiled in an eerily friendly way. "You know, no artifact can hold an infinite amount of energy. Not even my crystal. But it has a stupidly high limit, which is why we Serenities are lucky to be able to use it."

"... Is there a point to your rant?"

Younger Saturn's smile faded as her suit changed to its 'triple' colors. "If you were as smart as you think you are, you would have guessed it."

Shalim saw a beam shoot at her, but it didn't harm her. No, it was... Healing her? "What are you doing?"

"Healing you. Giving you energy. Enjoy it for as long as you can, which won't be long."

Shalim was no fool. She understood what her plan was now. She tried to force her foe to stop, but she was aware now, this 'kid' was a warrior, a very skilled one. It only took a minute, and as she felt the artifact cracking inside her body, she fell to her knees. "I lost? I am immortal, I cannot... I don't want to..."

Saturn saw the woman was aging fast. "You fear death? I can understand that. Still, your way of achieving immortality is evil."

Shalim looked at her, her face now wrinkled and old. "Being defeated by a kid would have been... Shameful, but I was beaten... By a warrior."

Serenity saw the woman's body turn to ashes, and the castle around them started collapsing. "Let's go back home."

* * *

Kyouko smiled as the three finished telling the others about what had happened. She then looked at Hisako. "I know the reason you got it wasn't a happy one, but congratulations on being the first Holy Senshi of our generation."

Usagi smiled. "Technically, that was me."

Kyouko frowned. "You don't count, mom."

Serenity flinched at that. "Wait, Kyouko knows..."

Usagi sighed. "Yes, she asked the obvious question, how you and me could only have a few years of difference in our ages. I... I talked it out with Hotaru, and we knew we would have to eventually tell her. Why wait a thousand years?"

Hisako frowned. "How long have you known about that?"

"Since I was twelve," Kyouko said.

Hikaru shook her head. "We avoided talking about that for this long... Why didn't you tell us?"

"You never asked."

"Like mothers, like daughter," Rei said.

Kyouko sighed. "There was one thing I was made aware of in that fight. I guess... A part of me didn't want to use the Ginzuishou in battle."

"Why?"

"I guess a part of me was afraid of it. All that power, on top of my own..."

Hikaru stared at her for a few seconds. "So during training... You weren't showing off?"

"No, I was scared of using it and hurting someone- I'm such an idiot. Sorry."

Hotaru looked at her. "I understand a bit of that. I feared my powers at first. Hated them, even. But I got over it, so I'm sure you can-"

Kyouko smiled. "After using them in this last battle? I know I shouldn't fear them, but I'll be careful with them. I've been a lousy Serenity for years, but I'll try to do better from now on."

Takamaru sighed. "I want to fight you again."

"We'll do that next time we train," Kyouko said.

Serenity smiled. "I suppose that's all for this meeting."

As the crowd thinned, Kyouko stayed behind, and so did Tsuki. Soon, the only four persons in the room were them and Luna, who was as curious as Serenity about Kyouko.

"Grandma, I need to ask... You could have beaten her, right?"

"Yes. Her artifact was magical, and I could have... Let's say I could have turned it off."

"So why did you let me-"

"Because Gin asked me to, told me you could learn something from that fight."

"She didn't tell me that."

Gin appeared next to them, only slightly startling Tsuki. "I cannot lie to a Serenity, but I can simply not answer questions which aren't asked."

"... Sneaky."

Serenity looked at Gin, then at Tsuki. "You already knew about her?"

"I saw her a few times before. Kyouko told me about her, so I guess Gin doesn't mind me listening to some of their talks."

Serenity smiled at that. "Good. She's not meant to be a secret, at least for us Senshi."

* * *

The first chance to really prove she was willing to change, and she had missed it. Not that she could have helped much, if the creatures attacking were close to Serenity's power. Still, Alma wasn't happy about missing a chance to prove her words weren't just words.

She had gotten used to training. Only two weeks passed since she started, but she had surprised her 'teachers.' She was quick to learn new things, both for magic and combat, and Usagi had told her that meant she was a warrior at heart. She had denied it at first, but... She couldn't lie, training was fun, if painful at times.

"Flare."

Hotaru leapt over the fire blast and tried to kick her chest. Alma ducked under that and shot a wind blast upwards, without calling the attack. "Good," Hotaru said as she blocked the blast with her hand. "You're really improving fast."

"Maybe I can find a job as a mage."

Hotaru smiled. "I'm not sure anyone needs that in this city, and mages outside this city are... Usually either vigilantes, criminals, or hired thugs."

"Damn."

"I know you insist on looking on your own, but... Friends should help each other."

"Friends... I'm still trying to figure out how you all can be so friendly to me."

"You aren't evil. That's enough for most of us. Anyhow, do you have any talent other than magic?"

"Talent? Other than cooking, I'm not that good at anything."

Hotaru nodded. "Maybe you should ask Mako, then. Can't speak for her, but she may find a place for you in one of her restaurants."

"... I'll give it a try."

A loud explosion was heard right then, and Alma saw Younger Mars picking herself off the ground near them. "You okay?"

Mars nodded as Younger Saturn floated her way, in her triple form. "I think I liked training with her better when she couldn't just go Serenity on me like that."

Her 'foe' powered down. "I can't keep this form going for long, but at least it's way more than a few seconds now."

Alma looked at them in turns. "But isn't Holy supposedly a thousand times stronger-"

"Math doesn't work well with Senshi powers," Hotaru said, "And Kyouko and the others should be ready to get their Holy form by now. And she is a Serenity. And a triple Senshi. Maybe Ami or Aiko have numbers to show how close she might be to Holy already."

"Didn't you get it in your late twenties?"

"Most of the Youngers have a decade of a head start on us, and plenty of people who can tell them how to improve. We were mostly self-taught, not counting Hakko's training."

"Oh, right... And your daughter is technically a third Sailor Moon. What is she called, Youngest Moon? Younger Younger Moon?"

"Technically?" Younger Saturn muttered. "Weird as it sounds, I'm more used to this than my Moon powers, but I'm not hiding from them. And really, I don't care what others call me, I am me. I get to choose my battle name."

"That's..." Alma sighed. "I guess I'm still not used to having a choice on what others call you. To not being called a monster anymore."

Kyouko smiled as she powered down. "Better get used to it, because you're not one." She then looked around. "Where's Mai?"

"She has a lot of tests coming. We may want her to train, but school is also important. Saving the world is our mission, but we Senshi need something to do with our free time. Also, despite some crazy rumors I heard outside the city, we do need to eat."

"When I was younger, I used to think being a 'Senshi' was a job, something you got paid money for."

Kyouko looked at Alma. "I wish that was true. I still don't know what I'll do for a living."

Alma nodded. "You know, from what I've seen, you're a good mentor. You-"

Kyouko thought about it for a moment. "I... I always liked what mom does." She looked at Hotaru, who smiled. "I'm not sure yet, but being a teacher would be something I could get to like."

Right then, Usagi appeared, looking at her daughter for a second before turning to Hotaru "Can I speak to you for a second?"

Both Kyouko and Hotaru knew her enough to know she meant speaking in private. "Go ahead, Hisa and I can take over for a bit."

Usagi nodded. "I know."

* * *

Hotaru looked at her wife as they both appeared in their house. "Anything wrong?"

Usagi sighed. "Not 'wrong,' just weird. I was... Hidden for a while, and I heard what they were talking about."

Hotaru knew Usagi would at times 'not be there' if she wanted to saw the young ones train without risking interrupting them. "I figured you were. What is weird about Kyouko wanting to be a teacher like me?"

Usagi smiled. "There was a very nice, yet strict teacher, when I was going through high school in the future. Her name was Kyouko Nanashi. When I heard our daughter talking about teaching, I... I imagined how she'll look in her late twenties."

'Nanashi?' Hotaru sighed at that. "From your face right now, I can guess she could look just like that teacher."

"I've been done grieving what happened in that future for a couple decades now, but... How could she be around if I-"

"Maybe it's just a coincidence, for once."

Usagi shook her head. "Setsuna, I need to ask you a few things."

Elder Pluto appeared near them. It was not the first time the younger Usagi had called her that way. "I suppose you do. I will answer what I can."

"Good enough. That Kyouko from my future, her last name was Nanashi. I may have been too young back then but I've seen enough fake names... Even created a few myself."

Pluto nodded. "She chose 'Nanashi' because she could not use her own last name, or her wife's last name, without making it too easy for you to figure out."

"But... How? Was I around in that reality? Did you guys know about the Hunters-"

Pluto shook her head. "No, in the reality you came from, we never knew. I've seen it myself. What you are 'remembering' right now is what this reality's future 'you' saw."

Usagi was about to say something, but then grimaced. "Shit, I can... I remember Kyouko Nanashi being my history teacher, but at the same time, I remember someone else being in her place... What the fuck?"

"If I could explain it, I would. It may be a consequence of what your mother did, or maybe your mind is somehow trying to let go of that other, painful future, by replacing it with the 'new' version."

"I... Damn it, time loops are a mess."

"I can't argue with that," Pluto admitted.

"Still, what I remember of that 'Nanashi' is... She'll be an awesome teacher."

"Just like her mom," Hotaru said.

"And you say I have a big ego."

"You do. And you're a bad influence for me."

* * *

Several years passed by, and the Senshi were enjoying the relative peace they had after their fight with the Second Dream Queen, as civilians called Shalim.

Serenity was thinking about how fast time seemed to pass for her. Kyouko was already in college, studying to follow Hotaru's steps. Usagi had warned her about what she could 'see and not see' in the future, so Serenity was proud of the young girl.

Kyouko and Tsuki had been living together for a few months. Serenity had, in her early days, been shocked, surprised at the thought of girls dating girls, but... Love was blind, as they said.

Alma and Takamaru were also dating. And Mai and Fubuki were in the 'like each other but are too shy to confess' phase.

Still, Serenity was aware of something. A powerful being was heading to Earth. For once, she could feel no evil intent, but she was far from naive. She would still keep her guard up.

* * *

A few days later, Serenity was waiting for the visitor, along with most of her friends. Even Alma had decided to join them, curious about this creature who could make Serenity feel uneasy.

No, there were two beings, Serenity could sense that as they draw near. Both beings were magnitudes above Holy Senshi power.

As they landed, she hid her surprise as well as she could. They looked like normal humans, a man and a woman, but from this close... This woman could probably use Galaxia as a punching bag. Still, where were her manners? "Welcome to Earth."

The woman looked at her for a few seconds before smiling. "Thanks, it's been a while. You are a Serenity... Wait, there's three of you?"

Moon nodded. "I am Serenity's daughter, and this girl here," she looked at Kyouko," is my daughter."

"Oh, you're a dual Senshi, like me, and this one is... A triple Senshi?"

Younger Saturn was not liking the way that womam was looking at her. "Who are you?"

"I have been many things through my life. A Senshi. A mother. A savior. Nowadays, I am just a tourist. Name's Ina, by the way. And this is my husband, Farren."

Mercury didn't need to dig too deep in her memory to remember. "Ina, one of the legendary Serenities. What I read about you is..."

Ina knew why the blue-haired Senshi was looking at her in shock. "Everyone makes mistakes, but only a few of us screw up big enough to make it to history books. I fell in love, I wanted Farren to be with me forever, but he... Rejected my offer. I was too blinded by fear, and made him immortal without his consent."

Farren had been silent, but when he saw the faces of those around him, he sighed. I was shocked, I was scared. I made it clear to her, that I didn't like what she did. But she..."

Ina nodded. "I was a coward. I ran away. I spent a long time searching for a way to undo the 'damage' I had done, not knowing Farren had already forgiven me, and was even happy about the gift I had forced upon him. I discovered my Saturn side thanks to a strange creature I met and had to kill. And that creature taught me a way... A way to kill without really killing."

Mercury flinched at that. Reading it was one thing, but knowing it wasn't just a legend... "The book I read speaks of an insane woman, who could absorb the souls of those she killed, and gain their knowledge, their memories. She-"

"Yes, I admit it. I was a monster. I still have that power, but I haven't used it in... Well, probably longer than your civilization has existed."

Farren nodded. "I can vouch for that. She was making up for her crimes for thousands of years, before she found me."

Ina looked at Serenity. "Let me give you a short version of all that. I was insane, I wanted to absorb Farren's soul. My mother tried to stop me and I... Killed her. But then I saw her memories. Even in her last moments, even as I attacked her, she still saw me as her daughter. She still loved me despite my madness. That... That made me realize what I had been doing, I left my sister Soma behind and she tried to lie about it, but Farren knew us too well. He went looking for me, and eventually found me."

Mercury sighed. Well, that last bit was not in that book. But why are you here?"

"Nothing evil," Ina said. "As I said before, we are tourists. I have avoided this world for an eternity. I was just curious about what the Senshi looked like nowadays."

Serenity nodded. "I sense no evil intent in you. Are you staying for a while?"

"Only a few days. I've sensed a beacon of power, out there, in a galaxy close to ours. Several beacons of power, actually. Half a dozen Senshi. Are they from here?"

"Two are, but they don't call this planet home anymore," Mercury said. "You may have heard of them, Gala and Mitra."

"Sailor Galaxia and the first Sun? They're alive?"

"Galaxia... She helped us destroy Chaos when it showed up decades ago. And Sun was... She didn't die when Galaxia threw her into the sun, but she was not quite sane when she appeared. Fortunately Gala could stop her from rampaging."

"Wow, those two were legendary even back when I was young. Maybe we'll go look for them."

Endymion looked at the two visitors. "You say you're tourists. But you're still a Senshi."

"In title only. I haven't fought evil in centuries. I just train to stay ready for it, but I do not... After what I did back then, I frankly didn't... How to say it? I can guess you all feel your 'warrior' side tugging at you in times of peace. I learnt to silence it. It hasn't nagged me about fighting evil for the last few thousand years."

"That's..."

Ina looked at Younger Saturn. "Don't get me wrong. I respect what you do. I will help worlds that need it if I am around. I just don't go out looking for evil to kill, like I can guess Galaxia does. I want to live the rest of eternity with the man I love."

Elder Venus sighed. "This may be too personal, but... Did you have any kids?"

"We've had hundreds," Ina admitted. "But they are not immortal, nor Senshi, except for the few I had before my madness started. Maybe the Cycle agrees with me that I am no Senshi anymore."

Serenity looked up to the sky, then to Ina. "I hope you like what you see in this planet. The rest of the world is a mess, but-"

"The rest of the world?" Farren asked. "Aren't you Queen Serenity?"

"I know how it was in the past," Serenity said, but mankind isn't ready to give up boundaries and feuds yet."

"I see..." Ina looked around. "I sense many non-humans around."

"We have an alien race living in this world. They started off as an evil army, but... Nowadays most of them have realized they have no chance to win a war, so they saw peace was not that bad after all."

"Not all evil stays evil," Ina said, "I know that too well. In any case, I never get involved in local wars. We'll just be around for a while."

Serenity had known something for decades. The universe never ran out of things to throw at them, either good or evil. It just took breaks from it, once in a while. And to be honest, she was fine with that. A thousand years still looked like a long time to her, but she could see they would still be busy before the day Dimando showed up.

* * *

**A/N:** I have things planned for most of the new characters before the Dark Moon arrives, but I decided to pick up the pace, starting from this episode.

As for 'Kyouko Nanashi,' Nanashi can be read as 'Without name.' Will I ever run out of 'puny' names? I hope not.


	14. Monsters who hunt monsters

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 1: Generations.  
Episode 14: Monsters who hunt monsters.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: August 14, 2019_

* * *

"You look good for your age."

Alma looked up from the book she was reading. "If I had known you had your father's sense of humor..."

Takamaru smiled. "You keep saying that, but we've been married for half a century now."

Alma hated to admit it, but he was right. Immortality, or at least not growing old, had not been a thing she wanted at first, but... When their son Shiki was born, she had given it some thought. Shortly after Shiki started going to school, she had asked Serenity to let her be with them for as long as they lived.

She couldn't forget her past, but she was not letting it tie her down. She had even helped the Senshi a few times, but enemies showed up less and less each decade. As for her job, she had been Serenity's rival for decades now. She had found she liked writing, the money was just a bonus.

* * *

One of Alma's best friends was not as happy, at least not at the moment. She had gone to the shopping mall with her family, but a group of criminals had decided to ruin her fun by locking down the place and taking everyone hostage. She didn't know if they were targeting a single shop, or all of them, but frankly, she didn't care. "Maki, stay here. Your dad and I will take care of those evil men."

Her daughter looked at her and smiled. "Go get them, Sailor Jupiter."

Mai looked at her husband as her clothes were replaced by her Senshi suit. "Let's go."

Fubuki smiled as his hands shone with magic. "Try to leave some for me."

The leader of the gang saw two people calmly walking to them. He instantly recognized the woman's suit. "Sailor Jupiter? Fuck, just our luck. Don't move a muscle, bitch, or we'll kill these hostages."

Jupiter gave the man a rather unfriendly smile. "Okay."

Just as she was done saying that, all of the gang was hit. Most of them had electric arcs shot out from under them, knocking them out, while the others had their hands and legs encased in stone. "What the hell... What are you?"

"A woman trying to enjoy the weekend with her loved ones," Jupiter said.

Fubuki smiled. I'll tell the chief we did his work for him again."

Jupiter nodded. "Tell him I said hi."

After graduating from college, Serenity herself had asked Mai if she wanted to move to Crystal Tokyo. She had declined. She was still eager to help defend the planet, but she liked the city she has grown in more. She still visited her friends once in a while, but she was one of few Senshi who felt out of place in that place most Senshi called home.

* * *

"Grandma, will I be a Senshi?"

Hotaru looked at the young girl. To a casual observer, Hotaru would have looked too young to be a grandmother, but nobody in Crystal Tokyo would be surprised about her being one. Still, Junko was already five, and obviously interested in following her parents' steps. "I'm sure you will." Junko was like her mother in more ways than one. Another triple Senshi, with the powers of Moon, Lilith and Nemesis. Her magic was yet to awaken, but it was just a matter of time until it did.

Usagi saw Kyouko was looking out the window. "You miss her, huh?"

"Always, but I'm not about to tell her to not go. She's never gone for long, anyways."

Usagi smiled. Tsuki had become an astronomer, although the way she went about observation made her also an astronaut. She had been close to all planets except Nemesis (for obvious reasons,) and had even landed in a few of them, to gather samples. Senshi could survive in deep space, but a Holy Senshi like her would even survive being in Pluto's surface for a few minutes.

Of course, she was the first human - as far as their civilization went - to set foot in all those planets and satellites. That had earned her some enemies, but she was not one to be intimidated by that - after all, she was older than most of those who called her a 'cheater.'

* * *

Hikaru looked at the screen and sighed. "Well, 'Captain Stratus 3' is selling as well as the prequels."

Hisako leaned back in her chair. "A joke. The first game of that saga was a joke. I just wanted to make fun of all the silly things older games did."

Her wife smiled. "I'm sure most of those playing them know. They'll get tired of them eventually."

"We just need to do something different. Else we'll end up being like some other companies..."

Hikaru shrugged. "I know what you mean, but then again, Dynasty Warriors 22 was good."

"... I would like to disagree, and I hate that I can't."

Right then, Kyouko appeared in the room. "Hi girls. Sorry to interrupt your fun, but... It may be time to save the world."

"Okay, but... 'May?'"

"Come to the War Room, we'll explain it to everyone."

* * *

"Been a while," Mako commented.

Serenity saw the last few Senshi arrive, and looked at them all. "I may be worrying about nothing, but... Earlier today, I sensed a spaceship heading this way. I sensed no evil intents in it, so I was about to just call a few of us here, but then... Tsuki appeared near me, and told me about a warship incoming."

Tsuki nodded. "Huge warship. I was trying to get some good images of the stars from Neptune's orbit, and I saw it."

"It's the same ship I sensed," Serenity explained.

"But if you sensed no evil-"

"It was far enough away the first time for me to doubt my senses... And I can't sense anything now."

"So they're blocking you?"

Serenity nodded at Naru. "Which means my sensing 'no evil' at first might have been just that they were shielding from me all along."

Aiko was looking up. "It's not just you. I have tried to scan that ship with every kind of sensor I can think of. No readings. If I wasn't looking at it, I would think it doesn't exist."

Kyouko looked at her mother. "Ever heard about this?"

Usagi nodded slowly. "I did, and yet I didn't."

"Ugh, that duality again," Hotaru said.

Serenity saw many of her friends were confused. "I guess we should have told everyone, back then." She looked at Kyouko. "But you knew?"

"Mom told me after I decided to become a teacher."

Usagi nodded. "I guess I'll explain. When Kyouko first mentioned her career choice, I could remember a teacher I liked in high school, one 'Kyouko Nanashi.' I knew that was my daughter. But I also remembered never meeting her."

Ami didn't need to think about it much to figure it out. "So you see both memories from the future you came from, and what the future 'you' will go through in our current reality?"

"That's our guess. Not even Pluto knows why."

Serenity sighed. "Back to the issue of that warship, we don't know-"

Usagi chuckled softly. "They're not hostile."

"Are you sure?"

"I figured out if I focus enough, I can 'see' the memories of this reality's future me. And yes, I know that's a weird phrase. Anyhow, I remember reading about these guys. They weren't hostile, just stupidly advanced."

"So they block us because they're scared?"

"Let's ask them about it when they come," Aiko said. "At their current speed, they'll be here in three hours."

* * *

The Senshi had decided to only have a small group welcoming their visitors this time. If they were scared, it was better to not have an army waiting for them.

The spaceship stood hovering over the forest surrounding the city, but the few people there didn't move, waiting as a part of the hull slid aside. The ship was large enough to fit thousands of beings, and it had very visible cannons to its sides. As a group of creatures started leaping out from the open 'hatch,' the Senshi realized the ship could fit millions of them.

Mercury heard one of the creatures speak and used her power to understand, then smiled. "We know you come in peace. Welcome to Earth." She was mentally updating a certain device as she spoke, a prototype that was only available to Senshi at the moment. An universal translator, based in her own abilities."

The small, bird-like creature looked up at her. "I am sorry, but my people has ancient records of beings like you. Violent giants with no beaks or wings. They destroyed themselves a very long time ago, before our race gained sentience."

Serenity looked at the creatures. They were small, not bigger than a small dog. They had arms and legs, but their 'hands' and 'feet' were birdlike, and they were covered in feathers. Their faces were also very bird-like. "I see... Our planet... Our species has been to space before, millions of years ago. Not sure you know what years-"

"We inherited many words from those 'giants,'" the creature said. "Many rotations of your planet around your star.

Serenity sighed. "We humans can be violent at times, mostly when threatened. The city you see in the distance is one where the strongest warriors of our race live. Crystal Tokyo."

"Then you three are-"

Mercury nodded. "We are warriors who defend our world from evil. But we also can enjoy peaceful times."

Moon had been silent so far, but smiled. "Good to see my prediction was good. You're not here to wage war."

The creature looked up at her. "Wage war? If the warriors in that city are as powerful as what we sensed in you-"

Serenity nodded. "Just like you have your way of shielding your ship, we have a skill that lets us cloak our power. What you're sensing from me is only one percent of my real level."

Another creature gasped and took a step back. "You are that strong?"

"Those who come to attack our world aren't usually weak. We need to be this strong to make sure mankind doesn't fall again."

"... Again?"

Mercury nodded. "Our race went nearly extinct thanks to a very powerful creature. It was killed, but our ancestors had to start again from nearly nothing. The second era of mankind ended thanks to a race of aliens with technology far more advanced than ours. And the third time around... One of our own, who wanted to rule us all, allied herself with an evil being and nearly succeeded in bringing an end to mankind."

"As you see," Moon said, "we have reasons to be wary when a warship shows up and we cannot scan those inside."

"I apologize for that," the creature said. "We are the last of the Avionne, our star went into its death spasms far earlier than we anticipated. This was the only ship that survived that disaster. It's been thousands of generations since then."

"You could-"

"Stay here? No. We mean no disrespect, human warriors, but we cannot stay. We are looking for a home we can claim as our own, to start over."

Serenity nodded. "I understand."

"Why approach our world at all?" Moon asked.

"Curiosity. As we said, you look like those giants of legend, maybe because those may have been 'humans' too."

One of the creatures looked at Serenity. "And since we're sating our curiosity, I have to ask... We think we saw one of you, out there. In space, but wearing that same outfit two of you wear."

"These outfits are a part of why we can go to space," Mercury explained. "Our magic does the rest."

"Magic?"

"You can measure it, so I thought you knew..."

"We can scan many forms of energy, but we can't use most of them, even with our tools."

Moon chuckled as a dozen balls of light started floating around her. "Our race can manipulate mana, often called 'magic' by most. Our group, the Senshi, are the strongest mana users."

"Senshi? Our legends mention that word. If I recall correctly, it was a group who tried to stop the war that destroyed them all, but failed."

Serenity smiled sadly. "We've heard tales of Senshi who has tragic lives, even in our world. I hope you find a world for your race."

"It probably won't be in my lifetime, but thanks, didn't think there were friendly races in our galaxy."

"We've also found few friendly visitors," Serenity admitted, "but that makes these encounters much more valuable."

* * *

Stories had told her about how immortality - when imagined by those who had no such 'blessing' - could make decades breeze by. But Queen Serenity of Crystal Tokyo could not agree with that anymore, even though at first it had seemed accurate. Time did not speed up for them, and she had definitely not become bored of the peaceful era they were living in. A century of life was a lot to look back to, and she was curious to know what else would happen in the future.

Of course, the 'peace' was only partial for a long time. While no aliens had shown up after those bird-like explorers, five decades ago, the world was still a bit messy. Thanks to the efforts of Haruka and Michiru, wars and armed conflicts had been less usual than in the past. And when a certain young Serenity decided to actively hunt down those who instigated wars and revolts, things had been more peaceful than ever. Junko was almost vicious in her hunt, even though she had not killed anyone. Those attacking her usually saw how futile it was to try to fight her.

Magic had rapidly replaced other weaponry even in war. Ami and Terry had been the first to see the potential - back in their teen years - of fusing magic and technology. Of course "Magitec" had harmful uses, but Serenity was against the idea of it being evil just because a handful of humans used it to harm others. Even a twig could be used as a deadly weapon if one had the right set of skills.

Of course, some corporations had fought against it. Mana-fueled vehicles had been resisted in some countries, but even the tricks used by those corporations in the twentieth century and the early twenty-first century had lost against them. Fake data, modified images and videos, and other underhanded tactics were easily dealt with - Aiko made a fool of those who tried, as a part of her mind was always 'online' and she could find and destroy those files moments after they were created.

As far as war went, there had been some very dangerous weapons created - even one that could do almost as much damage as a Guardian Senshi could, over a very large area. Junko had described it as a "magical nuke," and Serenity was glad they were never mass-produced.

Magic wasn't good or evil, it was a matter of what you used it for. And the Senshi were there to make sure those who used it to hurt and destroy were dealt with.

* * *

Junko looked at the group who had surrounded her. Their magic was weak, but she knew magic was not everything in a fight. Her mothers and even her grandmothers had taught her that, through their hellish training. "So, who are you lot? I'm not signing any autographs."

"Get off your high horse, Senshi bitch," one of them, a woman, said. "We are tired of being hunted by those like you. Why give the world magic if you're going to make all the fun things we can do with it illegal?"

Junko smiled. "Why are you asking me that? I am only a kid compared to those who decided that. I do agree with them, though."

One of the men chuckled. "Miss, you may look like you're twenty, but your real age is no secret."

Their target frowned. "Joking aside, fun things? If your idea of fun involves hurting, killing or manipulating, then I thank you for gathering in one place."

"You think you're so powerful, bitch? We are powerful too!"

Junko had to admit that they were no weaklings, if that woman's fire blast was their average. Maybe back when she was twelve, she could have lost in a fight against them. But they were thirty years too late for that. "Not bad, girl. If I was just a normal human, that flare would have killed me on the spot. But Younger Mars helped me train, and her fire? If she gets serious enough, she could incinerate a whole city."

"What the hell... How can you be that strong?"

"Strong? As I said before, I'm just a kid by my group's standards, and not just in age. Queen Serenity? Her power can make _me_ feel weak. Be glad it's me chasing you. Anyhow, if you play with fire, you will burn."

The whole area around them suddenly burst aflame, and most of Junko's foes fell to their knees. "This is... You can use fire?" The woman who had first spoken asked.

"That is not real fire. It will not burn you, or the buildings around us. But I am Younger Lilith, illusions are my favorite weapon. This fire doesn't burn or harm physically, but I can make it so your mind feels all the pain real fire would cause."

"I see... Stopwatch, we do it your way."

"Wha-"

A young woman walked to Junko as everything around them stopped moving. Even the fire was immobile. "My, my, I told them you would be strong. But all that magic means nothing when facing me, Stopwatch, the Master of Time."

Junko blinked at that and turned to look at her. "Really, 'Stopwatch.' That is your villain name? Also, why the fuck are you monologuing if you think nobody is listening?"

The girl backed away. She was planning to find a way to kill her while she stopped time, but... She knew she had no chance to win a fight against this woman. Time stopping was her only skill. "How can you... Nobody can move when I do this! Time stops! You cheater!"

"Cheater? Not really. See, stopping time uses a lot of mana, and you only affect a small area, but it _is_ quite a broken power. I suppose this is how you kill your marks. However, there are those in my group who can sense this type of magic. 'Master of Time' you said? This trick of yours is just a cheap knockoff. Sailor Pluto, the Senshi of Time, once moved an entire alien invasion fleet into the Sun. She can move back and forwards in time. And to answer your question, she helped Mercury develop a gadget that can break through time stopping magic, just in case. We all have one."

"I... Please... Don't kill me."

Junko saw the girl was in tears. It was pathetic to see how quickly these cold-blooded murderers changed their tune when they realized it was over. "Kill you? Your magic is dangerous, and I admit killing you would stop you from using it again, but... I am no murderer. And besides, death would be the easy way out for most criminals. I already called someone who can give you a fitting punishment."

The girl saw another woman appear. Every human on Earth would recognize her. Queen Serenity of Crystal Tokyo. "You..."

"Hello, my name is Usagi Tsukino. I would say 'nice to meet you' but you were using a very dangerous kind of magic to try and kill Junko, so..."

"What will you do-" The girl stopped and looked around. Things were moving again, and her allies were all looked around confusedly. "You stopped my spell?"

Serenity smiled at her. "No, I simply took away your ability to use magic, as I did with all your allies. From your face right now, you can already feel it. None of you is a threat to anyone anymore, at least not a magical threat."

"You monster!" One of the men shouted and rushed at Serenity. She simply caught his foot as he tried to kick her. "What are you?"

"A monster, you said it yourself. But not all monsters are evil. Junko is a monster who hunts monsters, and I will gladly help her with that when she asks me to."

"So what now, you send us to jail?"

Junko chuckled at that. "I never believed that kind of 'punishment' helped society. It's just a waste of resources and money. Punishing people by giving them free housing and free food? That sounds like a reward to me. No, you are free to go, but we will make your identities public. The families of those you killed, of those you hurt, they will know who you are. What they decide to do with that information is not our problem."

"But... Aren't you heroes? The good guys? What if someone tries to kill one of us, now that we are powerless?"

Junko looked at Serenity, who smiled sadly at her, then looked back at the man. "Then you'll finally know how your victims felt. We Senshi... We try to not kill humans if we can help it, but... To quote an old movie, I won't kill you, but I don't have to save you."

And the two Senshi left the area, not bothering with whatever else these ex-magicians had to say.

* * *

**A/N:** I don't think Serenity and Junko were being cruel in that last scene, but then again, I like the 'the wolf becomes the sheep' kind of punishment.

Also, if the 'Serenity' family tree keeps mixing things up, I may end up with a 'Sailor Solar System' at some point. For now, at least, triple powers are the limit.

As to why Junko is a triple Senshi and not a 'quintuple' as I hinted at before: I decided to go with some "magical genetics" fun. Let's say what makes Kyouko Sailor Earth and Sailor Saturn is 'skipping' a generation or five. The same could happen in other families.


	15. Pioneering

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 2: Exploration.  
Episode 15: Pioneering.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: October 17, 2019_

* * *

"The way mankind is going about it, it will take them a thousand years just to figure out how to settle in Jupiter."

"I don't think mankind is ready yet. We are still fixing this world, should we be bringing our mess to other planets?"

Usagi looked at Serenity. "The moon colony is doing its job so far. There's already children there, who only know the Earth as 'that large blue disc in the sky.' But expanding in such an environment takes too long, and in other planets... We haven't even reached Mars. Well, unless we count Tsuki, but that's hardly an achievement for a Senshi."

Endymion looked at his daughter. "Why the sudden interest? I mean, there's nothing wrong with trying new things, but-"

"It's because of that... Of my memories. In both versions of the future I can 'remember,' mankind had settled as far as the Jovian moons. As a kid I didn't pay much attention to it, but I remember history books saying it had happened in the early centuries of our city."

"Both versions agreed?"

Usagi nodded at her mother. "But here's one thing I remember. Something that, in hindsight, I should have tried to figure out. In my future, the leader of the colonization efforts beyond the Moon colony was Ami. In this version, there was no mention of who led mankind that far from the Earth."

Endymion had lived long enough, and seen enough 'impossibles' to guess. "So you think it was you, but the future you had to be kept in the dark about it."

"Yes. Of course, I don't doubt Ami could do it, but with all the differences between both futures, maybe me not being around was the reason why she thought about it first. Oh, and one more small difference: Colonization started earlier in my future. Twenty years ago, and Ami was involved with Mars' colonies from the start."

"So you want to do what Ami was doing in 'your' future?"

Usagi smiled at that. "No, I'll do something fancier. Ami had magitec and her genius. I'm sure that would let her think of some pretty amazing ways to terraform those worlds."

"Are you going to ask her for help?"

"Probably. But I won't use terraforming, I'll just... Undo what your 'other mother' did to stop Beryl's troops from taking over while you were gone."

Serenity blinked a few times. "Uncapping the mana wells? But those planets are wastelands, each in their own way. Are you saying restoring the flow of mana will magically fix them?"

"No, but I read, in both futures, about an item known as 'World Seed.' The Earth's one was never shut down, but the others... Maybe that Serenity did not want youma in other worlds to have any chances to survive, or maybe she wasn't aware of the 'Seeds' and the Earth one was tougher than the others."

Endymion nodded. "I remember reading about them, in my past life. They were considered just myths."

Serenity chuckled. "Sailor Galaxia was 'just a myth' too. However... You are not doing this alone, right?"

Usagi smiled. "Hotaru would tag along even if I didn't want her to. So, do I have your permission to do this?"

Serenity looked at her daughter, her face unreadable. "Permission granted." She then gave her a warm smile. "I can tell you are serious about this. Just be careful out there."

* * *

"The Earth looks amazing from here."

Moon smiled. "It does. I was here when the moon base was first open to tourists. Back when it was just 'the moon base' and not its current, silly name."

Saturn looked around. "I hope we are not breaking any laws by coming here without going through the usual channels."

"I did ask the man in charge. I will quote the Prime Colonist of Lunaris 1. 'Our laws apply to things we can deal with. And we would lose face if we forbid Sailor Moon from coming to the Moon.'" She looked around. "And besides, we're not inside Lunaris. I'm sure they're watching us, though."

"So, what is it we're looking for?"

"I will know when I find it."

"... What."

"These World Seeds are older than our oldest civilization. Not even _Gin_ knows what they look like. I'm sorry if I can't show you a picture of one."

"Sorry. How will you find it?"

"It can be in some crazy places. Earth's one is supposedly somewhere inside the core. The one in the Sun is inside the Sun. But to be affected by magic, the others need to be in less crazy places..." She looked down and smiled. "Like a deep system of tunnels and caverns."

"I thought they had not found anything larger than small caves down there."

"These are deep enough to be hard to detect. Also, protected by magic."

"Sounds like a crazy enough place to me," Saturn said.

* * *

"Prime, there are two Senshi a few miles north of our city."

The man looked at his secretary. "Is Sailor Moon one of them?"

"Yes."

"I see... They are looking for something here, something to do with an ancient artifact buried deep inside the moon. Just keep an eye on them, if possible."

"That will be... Quite difficult. They seem to have teleported. They are now several miles under the surface."

"Guess they found what they were looking for." He saw his subordinate was quite nervous. "Relax, boy. I was born on Earth. Senshi have been keeping that particular powder keg from exploding for two centuries now. They're not going to blow up the Moon, or anything."

"But if what I read about them is correct, they _could_."

"And yet they won't do it. That makes them the good guys, as far as I care."

* * *

It took them a few hours, but they finally found it. Moon looked at it and rose an eyebrow. "So this is the World Seed? Why does it look like a pyramid?"

"You probably got that backwards," Saturn said. "It's possible the pyramids were made to look like this."

"Weird. Anyhow, now I need to see if I can..."

Saturn saw her wife focus, her eyes shining white for a second. Then she felt a rush of energy. "Already done?"

"Mom told me how she had removed the 'seal' in the mana wells on Earth. As she guessed, the same thing could be used in other worlds."

"And the 'Seed'?"

"That... I am glad I was the one coming here."

"Huh? Why?"

"Something I didn't know, but the Seed just 'told me.' It can only be restarted by a Senshi connected to its world."

"So we'll need the others for the rest of the Seeds."

"Yeah." Moon closed her eyes for a few seconds, then fell to her knees. "Interesting."

Saturn could feel no change this time. "Did it fail?"

Moon staggered up. "No, it worked, but it... Takes a lot of energy to restart these, even by our standards."

"So, what now?"

"Let's go back to the surface."

* * *

"Sir, look outside!"

Prime Colonist Suann did just that, and had to blink a few times to make sure he wasn't imagining it. "The sky is..."

Moon and Saturn appeared right then. "I apologize for bypassing protocol," Moon said, "but I needed to explain what I just did. What you see out there is no illusion. The moon now has an atmosphere close enough to that of Earth to allow humans to survive, and mana shielding is already in place to make up for the lack of an ozone layer. In short, your people can go take a walk outside your city without wearing a spacesuit."

"That... How?"

"I will make this public knowledge soon enough, but... Each 'dead' world in our system has an artifact that allows humans to live in them. The Moon was one of many worlds of mankind, in a very distant past. I intend to bring a few other worlds out of their slumber."

"Does that mean we could even colonize other systems?"

Moon shook her head. "These artifacts need to be activated a Senshi who is using mana from its world. So if you set up a colony like this one, in a barren world in some distant system, and a child is born who has magic -Senshi magic - linked to that world, they could turn that world into something like what you see outside your window. If no Senshi appear in any new worlds we colonize, then they'll remain as hostile as they were."

The secretary looked at them. "I find it hard to believe you would do this for free."

Saturn smiled at him. "We have more money than we'll ever need already. It's our mission to protect mankind, even from itself. True, in the last century, humans have learnt to control themselves, and seeing a family with more than two children is rare, but there are still far more people on Earth than the planet can handle. It's a matter of either send people outside, or... Using less morally acceptable methods to reduce the population."

"It's that bad in there, huh?"

"Yes, so you could see it this way: We also need that planet to live."

* * *

One year later, Usagi returned to the satellite, and this time Kyouko had tagged along. "The trees are white, the birds are white, the grass is white, everything is white. How?"

"Magic," Usagi said, chuckling as Kyouko gave her a half-hearted glare. "Jokes aside, this may be one of those 'inverse thinking' things. It's not that the living beings in this world mimic the moon's color. The moon has that color because it was the color everything had before it was turned into a lifeless rock."

"Still, this is awesome. I wonder how Mars will look like?"

"Probably still red," Hotaru said. "But we'll go to Mercury and Venus first."

"So, Ami will have to tag along?"

"Yeah. I'm sure even if we asked Terry or Takamaru, they would both tell us to give that honor to Ami."

Kyouko looked around and smiled. "I think I found my new favorite vacation destination."

"There's some dangerous animals out there. Nothing we can't handle, but the moon is mostly wilderness now. They've been making plans to do as little damage as possible to this new world. Mankind does learn, I guess."

"So, anyone tried to make food out of any lunar thing yet?"

"I ate a steak made from one of the largest predators on the moon. It looks like a crocodile with a beak, named Hursk after the man who discovered it."

"So, what did it taste like?"

"It tasted like... A Hursk."

* * *

Days later, Usagi was visiting Ami's house, and had just told her and Terry about her next goal.

"I admit I am curious to see how that world will look once restored," Ami said.

"Don't remember it from your past life?"

Ami shook her head. "I was a 'bookworm.' My past self never got to see how the surface looked."

Terry rose an eyebrow at that. "Oh so the people of Mercury lived underground?"

"Most did, from what I can remember."

Terry nodded. "Anyways... You say you need a Senshi of that planet to reactivate the Seed. Wouldn't more than one Senshi make it easier?"

Usagi looked at him, then at Ami who had a very 'how didn't I think of that' face. "I... Didn't consider that."

Terry smiled. "I mean, it's not that I don't think she can do it, but I am curious about that world too, and I can share the burden of restarting that thing. Better than just sitting around watching bank accounts grow."

Usagi nodded. "It would also mean Ami wouldn't be drained as badly. That planet isn't human-friendly at all, so the less risks we take, the better."

Aiko appeared near them. "I'm tagging along."

"But you-"

"I am no Senshi, but I've been testing my limits, this last decade. Being able to use 'clones' to do the testing helps. The temperature on the 'dark' side of Mercury is nothing I can't handle. And breathing is quite literally a cosmetic thing for me."

"If I may ask, why do you want to go?"

"I want to see if I can find the database the Codex is connected to, the so-called Library. I am curious about what an ancient computer would look like."

Ami smiled at that. "Now that you mention it, I'm curious too. Maybe seeing how it works can help us improve computers of this era."

* * *

One thing the Elder Senshi had figured out a bit late in their lifetime was that teleportation magic, by itself, didn't have a limit. It was the magic reserves and skill of the caster that limited the teleportation spells. To a Holy Senshi, moving around the solar system was a matter of knowing where to go. And as Mercury herself had tested, two decades ago, they could reach the surrounding star systems, though that required enough magic to make even a Senshi of her level feel tired.

In any case, getting to Mercury - the planet - was not an issue for them. Surviving in it, however, was a different matter. "Okay, let's hurry, I don't think we can stand the heat for long." Even in the "dark" side of the planet, the temperature was downright deadly for normal humans. The Sun side was a scorching wasteland, and the dark side was a freezing desert. Could the World Seed really make this place good for humans?

Moon smiled. "There, found it. Follow my lead."

* * *

Saturn looked around the place where they had teleported to. "Another deep cave system."

"Maybe that's the difference," Aiko said, "maybe the Seeds other than the Earth's one were all too exposed to whatever the old Serenity did back then."

Moon was looking at the 'Seed.' "Maybe we are a century and then some behind schedule for this one."

Dragon Saturn smiled at the joke. Moon had told them the World Seed on the Moon was a pyramid, but this one was a black monolith. "Good thing we didn't bring HAL along."

Aiko shook her head at that. "Just do your thing, guys."

Moon nodded, focusing for a moment as she searched for the 'seal' in the planet's mana. It took her a few seconds to find it, and a whole minute to break the seal. She fell to one knee and winced. "Well, I just learnt something. Apparently the Moon's cap was way weaker than this one."

"How-" Mercury started, then gasped as she felt a rush. Both Serenity and her daughter had told them about it, but it was still strange for her, to feel her power rise so fast. "I see now you were right about the mana flow."

Dragon Saturn nodded. "Guess I should change for the party." With a thought, his Saturn colors shifted to his Mercury ones.

Aiko waited as her parents focused on the Seed. It took a minute, but as they opened their eyes, she could sense it even this far underground. The planet had an Earth-like atmosphere now. "Amazing."

Mercury looked at her glove. "I can feel it from here. The Library."

"I haven't been to one for decades," Moon joked.

Mercury sighed at that. "Let's go."

* * *

"Welcome back, High Librarian."

Moon looked around, but saw no source for the voice. This was an empty cavern, with no interfaces or visible machinery anywhere. "The library has an AI?"

"I am aware of the term, Lady Serenity. I could be called that, in a way, but my 'program' was built from spells. I am also older than Senshi themselves."

Mercury looked around. "Who created you?"

"A race almost as old as this universe. They created me, and other artifacts. The one you now know as 'Gin' was one of their best works."

Moon frowned. "So, they had Senshi too."

"No."

Aiko blinked at that. "Then why create those artifacts-"

"They had ways to see what would be, in a far more accurate way than even the Gatekeepers of Pluto can. They knew Senshi would exist, and they knew artifacts would exist to aid them. They saw themselves crafting those artifacts, so they did it."

"So they... How were Senshi powers created?"

"I cannot answer that."

Aiko looked around. "Can't or won't?"

"Both. I am a program. You of all humans should know better than anyone that I do not withhold information because I 'want' to."

Aiko sighed. "Yes, I still remember how- Wait, how do you know?"

"I am the Codex, a part of me is in the Artifact linked to your mother's very soul. My mission is to be a source of data, but to that end, I am a keeper of the history of this system. I know how you started, Aiko Mizuno. It is interesting to see how far a 'program' can go-"

Aiko glared at the walls around her. "I am not-"

"I would think you were at peace with your origins, but do not misunderstand me. I do agree with you. You are not a program, not anymore. My creators would be as impressed as I am by your evolution."

Dragon Mercury sighed. "So, where exactly are you?"

Mercury smiled. "The Codex is here. All around us. It is made of raw magic energy."

"My only 'physical' form is the glove in Sailor Mercury's arm."

"Are other artifacts... Sentient?"

"No. Not even to the level of my emulated sentience. Gin was the only one who came close to what you are, Lady Phase."

Saturn sighed. "I must admit you are an interesting... Program, Codex. May I ask why parts of the data in her 'terminal' is locked?"

"My database has no locks, but to access any particular part of it, two conditions must be met. One, that the person is a Librarian, a Senshi of Mercury, or a Serenity authorized by one. Two, that the person asks the right question." Mercury nodded at that. "In the past, I've tried to figure that out. It makes sense to me."

Moon looked around. "I think I'll leave you guys to talk to this Codex. Have fun."

"Your goal is a good one, Lady Serenity," the Codex said, "but you don't need to rush it."

"I am aware of that. I just don't see the need to be here right now. Ami will tell me anything else I need to know about you and this place."

Saturn looked at her and nodded. "I'll go too."

Mercury frowned for an instant. "Something wrong, Usagi?"

Moon shook her head. "Don't worry."

* * *

Saturn looked at her wife as they both appeared back in their home. "Am I wrong to think there was something worrying you?"

"Not worry, just... What that Codex said made me wonder about a few things. Like where the 'ancient race' who created our artifacts is right now."

Saturn smiled. "Maybe they'll come to visit, or maybe they're watching us from... Elsewhere."

"You don't mean..."

"Not saying any of our planet's religions is completely right, but... Creating a world in one day? If not taken literally, it sounds like what you did twice already."

"... I hadn't thought about it that way."

"... But you're still going to 'fix' other worlds."

"Of course," Moon said, "it's the one thing that was the same in both of my 'memories.' All planets up to Jupiter had humans in them."

"Jupiter?" Saturn shook her head. "That one won't be easy. High gravity, massive size, the actual solid part of it is incredibly dense and small, compared to its atmosphere..."

"Sounds like fun."

"Your definition of fun worries me."

* * *

**A/N:** It's nice to have a couple normal humans around for a change, even if just for a couple scenes. A reminder that not everyone in that reality are magicians, monsters, aliens, Senshi, or any combination of those.

And so starts Act 2 of this book. How many arcs have I planned for this? More than two. You're welcome.


	16. The worlds of mankind, old and new

**Sailor Moon Aeons.  
Book 3: Crystal City.  
Act 2: Exploration.  
Episode 16: The worlds of mankind, old and new.**

_By Razor Knight  
Last update: February 23, 2019_

* * *

She looked around and nodded. "Okay, this explains why Mercury is the Senshi of Ice."

Usagi smiled. Hotaru was right, the planet Mercury had been transformed into a quite different world. The 'sun' side of the planet was an ocean with small islands (the former mountains of the planet,) while the other side was an icy plain with few spots of solid ground scattered about. And yet the temperature on both sides was close to what they were used to. The 'dark side was only slightly colder than the Earth's polar regions.

"This planet looks awesome now."

Once again, Kyouko had tagged along, but there was one more guest. Tsuki, the first Senshi of their civilization to ever set foot on most of the worlds of the Solar System. She was looking around in awe. "Won't the underground caves be flooded?"

Usagi shook her head. "Ami asked the Codex that same question. Many of the 'islands' on both sides have entrance tunnels, and the islands were built in a way which makes it virtually impossible for water to reach those tunnels."

Tsuki nodded. "I see. I wonder how they settled Jupiter and Saturn. Getting to the planet, the actual rock under all that gas, was tough for me."

"I asked Ami about that. Apparently the Jovians lived on the larger moons of the planet," Hotaru explained.

* * *

Hisako smiled as she watched the two kids play. Ten years ago, the two had decided to try something new. That something new was being parents, and Hisako couldn't complain about the results. The twins were a bit mischievous, but she knew they were just being kids.

Koichi, the (minutes) older boy, had inherited Hikaru's power. His sister, Homura, had Hisako's power. They were nine, and already training their magic. In fact Homura was almost up to the level of a Twilight Senshi, although her Senshi powers were still dormant. Ami had guessed the potential power of Senshi grew with each new generation - Kyouko and Junko being good examples of this, as they could both defeat any of the "Elders" if they got really serious.

"When is mom coming back?"

She looked at Koichi and smiled. "She'll be back soon, don't worry." She wanted to tag along, but had decided to keep an eye on the kids. This time around, Hikaru was going to be one step ahead, but... She didn't mind. She was guessing her turn would come soon.

* * *

The air pressure, the heat... She had heard Tsuki talk about this, but it was worse than she expected. It wasn't something immediately deadly for someone like her, but it was still mildly painful. "This place is bad."

Moon looked at her. "Yes, it is." She focused for a minute and frowned. "Can you sense that?"

Saturn nodded. She couldn't sense the 'Seed' but she could sense something else. "Hundreds of creatures, as strong as a Twilight Senshi. Some stronger."

Venus focused and flinched. "But what kind of creature could still be alive-"

"Humans," Saturn said.

Moon nodded. "I can sense other things. Let's get some fresh air. Follow me."

* * *

The three Senshi appeared inside a cave. No, this was no normal cave, Hikaru realized. The walls were smooth, and she could see a magical light source near them. "Amazing."

A group of six women were walking to them. They wore suits similar to their own. They all had whips and seemed, for a moment, eager to use them. "Fangirls?"

Moon shrugged. One of the women spoke, and the translator all Senshi carried with them nowadays made it possible to understand their language. "You are... Senshi?"

Moon nodded. "We are restoring the planets one by one. Didn't expect to find... Survivors."

The women visibly relaxed. The one who spoke first smiled. "Our ancestors fled to these caves and used a spell to keep the poisons of our atmosphere outside. We've been living underground ever since the Moon fell."

Venus decided to ask something that was nagging her. "Why do you all use whips?"

"It was the chosen weapon of several Venus Senshi of the past."

"Oh right, mom has something like that."

"So, are you here to drive the poison back?"

Moon nodded. "I don't think your ancestors knew what happened. Serenity and the evil Metallia clashed, and their magic was so strong, it created an energy ripple that caused all of the planets to die."

"It disabled the World Seeds," the woman said.

"Yes. How-"

"We know where the one of our world is. Our ancestors' stories tell us they discovered it and knew it was possible that whatever caused it to stop working had affected other worlds."

"It did. Most of mankind died that day. But us humans are not easy to get rid of - your group proves that. Mankind is much more numerous than ever before, and looking to expand to other worlds."

"So your civilization will-"

Moon smiled sadly. "Our civilization has a history of bloodshed and paying too much attention to arbitrary borders. We are... Getting better at avoiding either of those defects. Once I reactivate this planet, I will speak to my mother, the current Queen Serenity, and I know she will agree with me. I am neither an invader nor a conqueror. I didn't know this planet was taken."

The woman was shocked. Another woman, younger than her, frowned. "We just have your word-"

The first woman, who was clearly the leader, rose her hand to stop her. "The word of a Serenity. That is good enough for me. Besides, Saria, you can sense magic, we all can. If they wanted to get rid of us, they would have done so already."

Moon sighed. "I would like to say it's rare for people who can feel our power to be intimidated, but... I'm used to it."

Saria nodded slowly. "I meant no disrespect, Princess Serenity."

"We will be back once the planet returns to how it was, and I'll bring along at least one other Senshi."

* * *

Hours later, the Senshi were back on Earth, and each had gone back to their usual daily activities.

Hisako looked at her wife as she finished telling her about her trip to Venus. "So there were humans there."

"Yeah, I wasn't expecting that."

"At risk of sounding cold, leaving a whole planet to just a few humans seems like a waste."

"It's their planet. They were there first. Usagi is right, we are not conquerors."

"Think the rest of the world will agree?"

"Do we care?" Hikaru muttered. "If anything, this will be a chance to show them we are not like the old empires, always looking to expand. Set a good example for the rest of the world."

"Guess that's true."

"Anyways, did the little devils behave?"

"Surprisingly, yes."

* * *

Minako was, meanwhile, talking to the two Usagi. "So, what will our... Official message to the world regarding the newest inhabitable planet?"

Serenity looked at her daughter, then back to Minako. "The planet Venus is under our protection, and we will treat any attempts at foreign settling as a breach in protocol. The settlers will be sent back to their country."

"What about any... Invasion attempts?"

"I would love to think this last half century shows mankind has learnt to share, but maybe it was the fact we Senshi are keeping peace. In any case, we will deal with any invasion forces ourselves. Magical weaponry can be disabled, and we will do just that. The people of Venus have warriors who could have defeated us back when we were an urban legend. They can defend themselves, but I hope they don't have to."

Moon nodded. "Of course, trading will be allowed, but monitored. The people of Venus has a magic-only civilization, and was isolated for a very long tome, so I think they may have interesting artifacts to offer."

"Right. I'll go deal with the press now."

"Good luck. Mamoru is already on a tour to meet several country leaders and alliances. Hopefully they will get the message."

* * *

A week later, Hisako was somewhere new. And as she scanned the landscape with her eyes, one thing became clear to her. "Mars looks so damn boring."

Moon chuckled. "I guess that's one way to say it. Anyhow, I already found the Seed."

"No Martians?"

"No, Venus might be the only planet- Well, there's Nemesis but we're not going anywhere near that one."

"Will this planet change?"

"Venus is still wrapped in a cloud of toxic gas - but the Seed's awakenig pushed that gas up to the clouds, leaving an atmosphere similar to Earth's own. Also, the mana flowing around Venus cooled the air down a lot. It's still a hot planet, but no longer 'deadly for normal humans' hot."

"So this place will still be boring."

Hotaru looked up, seeing one of the planet's satellites (Phobos or Deimos? Hard to tell from that far.) "We made Venus a 'look but don't touch' planet, so I doubt Mars will stay boring for long."

* * *

Moon looked at the planet 'below.' Jupiter. For the last few centuries, she had observed the new worlds, watched the initial intake of colonizers - except for Venus - grow into its own brand of mankind. Mercury had, not surprisingly, the largest fish industry in the system, while Mars had many cities. The Moon was the smallest 'new world,' but also the first to be settled, and had its own thriving society. Venus... After the initial culture shock, which the Senshi had helped with, the Venusians had expanded, eventually accepting 'outsiders' and slowly became the world it was now.

Jupiter, however... The planet itself was not worth touching. A relatively small solid 'core' in the center of a hellish sea of gases. Awakening its Seed had not improved this at all, but... Most of the moons of Jupiter were linked to it. How, not even the Codex knew. But mankind had settled on Io, Europa and many other moons of the Jovian system.

She looked to the side. She could sense them, even from this far. Nemesians. Still unaware of the monster lurking in their world. She could sense him... It. Death Phantom. Wiseman. She remembered her youth. Even as she helped her mother kill it, she had still been terrified of it. And yet, to her present self, Death Phantom looked weak, pitiful.

Yes, she could just go and destroy it right now. But she wouldn't. She knew time was far more malleable than Pluto had taught her - her own last trip through time was proof enough - but she still felt it could be a bad idea. Some would argue not killing that monster now, before it could cause pain to many, was 'taking the easy way out.' In her youth, she would have agreed. But she was many centuries old now. She had waited for Death Phantom to make the first move for centuries. It would be annoying to have waited for this long, and then give up with only a century left before that day.

She knew the day was coming, slowly but relentlessly. The day she - this reality's version of her, at least - would be born. The universe would have to deal with the 'impossible' facts. There would be two of her for a while. One of them would be going back in time at least twice. And then...

It was a weird feeling. On one hand, she could not wait to be done, to see the Hunters come and go, to complete the 'loop.' But something in the back of her mind felt this was wrong. Would her parents and her friends fake their deaths? Would they send her - the young ChibiUsa - away with a lie?

Had they done that before, in her own timeline?

No, even back then, she knew what she had felt. There was no way to emulate that, the dreadful feelings a Senshi had when someone 'linked' to them died. Even now, centuries after that day, she could still remember that feeling. It had not been an act.

But that still meant... If they killed the Hunters, her 'other self' would have no reason to go back. And frankly, after knowing her friends for as long as she had, she couldn't see them losing against these morons. They were too weak.

Or, she thought, perhaps they were stronger. That could be it. Her being around had affected fate, changed things, made it so they all reached a level of power they had not reached in her version of the future.

But it was silly to try and guess. She would figure it out eventually. A century was still a long time, even to 'immortals' like her. She would have to wait and see.

* * *

"So, ten years until..."

Kyouko looked at her wife. "Yeah. Mom will be born in a few years. And that's a phrase I never expected to say before I knew of her... Circumstances."

Tsuki smiled. "Most people only get to see pictures of their parents as babies."

"Lucky me, huh?" She looked out the window for a minute. "Mom may not like me thinking this, or she may agree, but... In a way, I'm looking forwards to the Nemesian mess."

"I've known you for a very long time, so I know why. You're as much of a warrior as your mother and grandmother."

"Guilty as charged."

* * *

How could they become so dull, so boring? It was fun watching them struggle, at first, but this group was just like the ones before them. Growing too powerful made them boring. Maybe it was time for him to, once again, stop watching and start acting. Just a few pushes in the right direction, and maybe he could finally have fun.

* * *

**A/N:** The return of the mysterious unknown entity. It wouldn't be fun to just say who that entity is, as much as it wouldn't have been fun to reveal who 'A' was in the previous book before the point where I decided to reveal it.


End file.
